Niya
by draconia22
Summary: Niya has fewfriends, most see her as unapproachable and she is also something of a potions prodigy and a healer. With the death of her father she is taken in by the Weasleys. Many of the Professors and Order Members find that she is a mystery.ABANDONED
1. Chapter 1

This is my first fanfic, please be nice.

Disclaimer.: I will only be doing this once. I don't own Harry potter unfortunately it all belongs to JK Rowling. I'm just taking them out to play.

Chapter 1

"Hey Haz, we're over here!" Niya called out spotting the black haired green eyed youth as he walked into the park, waving a little to catch his attention. "I see you managed to sneak out after all." She smiled welcomingly as he took a seat on the picnic blanket and accepted the small plate of food as she passed it to him. "We were beginning to think that you weren't going to make it, today."

"Yeah well it took me awhile to finish up my chores, but thankfully they all decided that a shopping trip in London was a good idea and took off and won't be back until tomorrow." He shrugged as he adjusted his black glasses on his face picking at the chicken and salad in front of him. "So how has you're week been Niya, Dray?" He asked looking over the two. Dray's white blonde hair was a little mused as he looked up at Haz from Niya's lap, his silver eyes narrowed in thought.

"Slow really." Niya shrugged, "Well except for work that is, the boss keeps throwing hours at me so I won't get bored, now that I've finished my summer homework, though I did get a letter from my Uncle." She pulled a small face.

"Oh? Is he coming home early?" Dray asked in a slight drawl.

"No, he is transferring me to another school." She shook her head with a small sigh.

"He's pulling you out of Beauxbaton?" Dray blinked in surprise. "That's one of the best schools there is, other then Durmstrang and Hogwarts."

"He seems to think that I would be better off at Hogwarts." She shrugged. "He wants me to be some where I will be protected, never mind that he is placing me right on the firing line moving me there…that's one of the reasons he sent me to Beauxbaton in the first place."

"So you will going to school with us in September? Well as great as that will be, it could be bad too." Haz frowned. "For starters no one knows that we are friends, most would go mad if they knew that Dray and I had ended our rivalry and want to know why and wondering if I have gone bad…let alone knowing you as you went to school in France."

"Haz, you are thinking too muggle." Dray drawled rolling his eyes. "Though you do have a point in them wondering how you know her, after all you are rarely let out during the summer." He frowned.

"That's easily fixed." Niya pointed out with a small chuckle. "We did go to the same primary school…I may be a pure blood Dray but remember that I was raised by my muggle Uncle."

"Ah…if your uncle is muggle then how can you be pure blood?" Haz asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well okay so he is a squib, but he's been living the muggle life since he was eighteen." She shrugged tucking her strawberry blonde hair behind her eyes and her sea blue green eyes twinkled. "His family supported him until he made a decision on what he wanted to do with his life, he hasn't spoken to them in years but he sends and receives letters a few times a year from one of his brothers….well he did until he was killed in the war years ago." She sighed. "I know you don't know much about you're family history Haz, but I am related to you, I found that out last week."

"Really? How?" Haz asked his eyes brightening with the revelation.

"Your father had an Uncle, and I am his granddaughter, so I am your cousin." She explained with a small smile. "I am also a cousin to the Weasely's."

"But your surname…" Haz frowned.

"Father changed his name for the muggle world." She shrugged. "I think that is the only reason that Father is still alive, most people think that you are the last Potter but you aren't. Father's real last name is Potter, not Jackson."

"That is quite a revelation Niya, just make sure that no one knows about it." Dray warned quietly as he popped some grapes into his mouth. "The question is does Dumbledore know?"

"I doubt it, father told me that after his family was killed that the wizarding ministry tried to find him but turned up nothing, he is assumed dead, that's why when he enrolled me in Hogwarts it was under the name Jackson." Niya shook her head.

"What about the Weasely's?" Haz asked finishing up his meal.

"Well they do know about me, I mean it's pretty obvious that I am related to them." She tugged at her hair. "They are my Wizarding Guardians so if anything ever happens to father I get sent to them." She frowned. "Hey what is the date?" She asked looking at her friends.

"2nd of July why?" Dray asked sitting up and pouring himself and Haz a drink.

"Father should have sent another letter a few days ago…" She shook her head looking worried. "He never misses a date, even when he is travelling."

"Maybe it's still coming Niya, you know that sometimes mail takes a while to get through from over seas." Haz commented, removing his glasses and rubbing his eyes.

"Haz when was the last time you slept a full night?" Dray asked finally noticing the shadows under his eyes.

"Awhile." Haz sighed. "If the nightmares aren't keeping me awake then my scar is." He shook his head as if to clear it. "I tell you I can't wait for my seventeenth birthday, I can finally use my magic with out getting into trouble for it and I'll finally be able to leave the Dursley's."

"Now that is something to look forward too." Niya grinned at him. "Hey Dray don't you have that appointment with your mother at two?" She asked as a clock tolled near by.

"Bollocks." Dray swore as he set his cup down with a sigh. "There goes my good day. Shall we meet here again next week?" He asked as he stood up and looked around making sure that he wasn't going to be seen.

"Sure thing, Dray." Haz nodded with a smile.

"That would be good for me." Niya nodded.

"See you then, send an owl if you can't make it." He grinned at them both before apparating away.

"Come here Haz." She gestured for him to sit a little closer and held her hand to his normal looking cheek and a small white glow with a faint hint of green covered her hand and his cheek. "There now you can drop the glamour." She gave him a faint smile.

"How did you know?" He asked softly looking down at his hands as they twirled the cup in his hands.

"I am an empath remember?" She reminded him as she gave his shoulders a quick squeeze. "And you know that I won't say anything unless you tell me too or I think you are in danger…was he very bad today Haz?" She asked softly.

"No, Niya. He was just trying to make sure his orders were followed while they were gone." He shook his head.

"Does anyone know? Besides me and Dray that is?" She asked, tipping his chin up so he was looking her in the eye.

"The twins know, so does Ron, I know that they won't tell anyone as I swore then to secrecy like I did with you. The adults have too many other things to worry about then me." He said quietly.

"You know that isn't true Haz." She told him sternly. "I don't care what that Uncle of yours told you, you are worth the attention if you are being injured…" She broke off and shook her head. "It doesn't matter how many times I tell you, you aren't going to believe me just yet are you?"

"Not yet." He gave her a small timid smile. "But I am getting there slowly, thanks to you and Dray."

"Well that's something we are good for, making you smile and enjoying yourself every week." She gave him a peck on the cheek and began packing up the picnic with Haz's help.

"What house do you think you will be placed in?" He asked as she finished packing up the basket and he picked up the blanket and began to fold it.

"Well Potter's and Weasely's have always been in Gryffindor, and I've been told often enough that I am brave, reckless and arrogant enough so I guess that's where I'll end up. I know for a fact that I am not a Hufflepuff or a Ravenclaw and I doubt that I am good material for Slytherin." She placed the basket on her arm and together they headed for the street. "At least being in the same house I can help you when you need it…just remember all you need to do is ask, verbally or written you know I don't mind." She smiled at him as he wrapped his arm around her waist for a one arm hug as his other arm was busy with the blanket. "You want me to walk you home?" She added with a glance down at his left ankle.

"No, I'll be alright." He shook his head. "If I need you I have your numbers." He added with a small grin.

"Alright you little scamp, I'll see you next week." She gave him a quick squeeze and took the blanket from him. "Take care of your self, Dearheart." She added as he hurried off once they reached the street, he turned and waved before disappearing around the corner.

She chuckled to her self as she crossed the street humming under her breath as she walked passed a block of units and reached a small coffee strip, with two bars and walked into a unit that was right next to it, smiling to the elderly lady next door.

"Afternoon Mrs Nettle." She greeted her as she slid her key into the lock.

"Afternoon Niya." She waved back.

Niya picked up the mail that had been delivered while she was gone and set the basket on the ground and flipped through it and closed and locked the door behind her. "Merc, Bassie I'm back." She called out and chuckled as a blue grey sleek cat trotted down the stairs with a 'Meh' of greeting and she heard a 'Hoot' from the lounge room. "Bills, Bills and more Bills." She sighed as she tossed them to the side table. "Any mail for me Merc?" She asked as she approached a silver grey owl on his perch. Merc tilted his head and shook his whole body, his way of telling her no. "Nothing from Father yet then." She sighed and gave Merc a scratch before crouching down and letting Bassie jump up on to her shoulder and laid around her neck and gave her cheek a quick lick of welcome and comfort. "You know what guys it's times like this that I wish I was working this afternoon." She told them both with a sad smile. "Too bad I already did the house work and my homework." She turned at the sound of some one knocking on her door. "Now who would that be?" She frowned and turned back to the hallway, unlocked the door and opened it and saw a red headed man in his late thirties, probably closer to his forties with a black skinned bold man with a gold earring. "Can I help you?" she asked, frowning a little at their clothing, that looked severely mismatched.

"Niya Jackson?" The red headed man asked looking a little uncertain.

"That's me." She nodded.

"This is Kingsley Shaklebolt and I am Arthur Weasley." He introduced them.

Niya's hand tightened on the door. "Weasley?" She asked faintly. Bassie nudged her face and began purring in her ear. "Please come in." She opened her door wider and stepped out of the way so they could enter and closed the door behind them, leading them to the kitchen and automatically put the kettle on and pulled out mugs. "So what brings Ministry workers to my door?" She asked as she set the mugs on the table as they sat down and added the sugar jar and milk jug.

They both blinked at her. "You know about Wizards?" Shaklebolt asked a little surprised.

"Well yes, I am a witch after all." She nodded with a slight chuckle. "My father is a squib." She poured the water into the pot and set it down on the table and grabbed a plate of biscuits as well. "I take it that you didn't know that small piece of information?"

"No, we didn't." Mr Weasley shook his head. "We're here to ask about your father though."

"What about him?" She asked with a raised eyebrow as she poured the tea and handing them the full mugs.

"When was the last time you saw him or heard from him?" Shaklebolt asked adding milk to his mug before sipping at it.

"I last saw him nearly five months ago, before he left for his new job in Germany, I got a letter from him not two weeks ago, I am expecting another letter any day now." She shrugged, adding sugar to her own tea and cool water before sitting down. "Why are you so interested in him? He hasn't been apart of the Wizarding world since he was twenty."

"We were contacted by the German Ministry asking us to get in contact with you, to see if you had heard from him. According to them he has been missing for nearly two weeks, he was working as muggle contact in the police force for them." Mr Weasley replied with a small sigh setting his tea down. "No one has seen or heard from him since the seventeenth of June."

"Two days after he wrote his letter." She whispered faintly slumping slightly in her seat.

"May I ask why he didn't take you with him?" Shaklebolt asked looking a little concerned.

"I was in School at the time, but he made sure that I had everything that I needed until he returned, some times sending me more money, letters letting me know that he was alright, some times he'd call once a month when I am on break…He just transferred me from Beauxbaton to Hogwarts." Her voice was weak and she knew that her face was pale and she felt sick to her stomach.

"What year are you in Ms Jackson?" Mr Weasley asked kindly.

"Seventh."

"When is your birthday? We may have to find your next of kin…" Shaklebolt inquired.

"October 31." She glanced at Mr Weasley.

"Do you know who your next of kin is?" Shaklebolt asked with a small sigh.

"Yes…were told my father's full name?" She asked taking a few gulps out of her mug.

"No, just his surname and your name and address." Shaklebolt shook his head.

"His name was Daniel Charlie Jackson." She looked directly into Mr Weasley's eyes and smiled slightly as his eyes widened.

"Arthur is something the matter?" Shacklebolt asked in concern.

"No, nothings wrong but you don't have to go looking for her next of kin." Arthur shook his head.

"Why?" He frowned.

"I am it." He smiled shakily.

She smiled at Shacklebolt's look. "My full name is Niya Molly Jackson, I was named after my Uncle's wife." She chuckled quietly under her breath as Shaklebolt blinked before his eyes widened in understanding.

"You'll have to come home with me, Ms Jackson if that is the case…" He broke off as an owl swooped in through an open window and landed in front of him and held out his foot. He took the letter and the owl hurried off with out waiting and he broke open the seal and slumped slightly as he read.

"Please tell me that isn't what I think it is…" Niya asked her voice shaking as she recognised the seal of Gringotts.

"Your father's will, I am sorry Niya." Arthur replied quietly.

"No…" Her voice hitched and tears spilled down her cheeks and her mug clattered to the table spilling as she hid her face in her hands, as she choked back a sob. She had tried to make herself believe that he would be found alive if not well.

She felt herself gathered up in a hug, even as Merc moved to her lap purring loudly. She heard talking around her but took no notice, drowning in her grief.

She barely took notice as she was moved, gentle hands guiding her to the fire place and more gentle hands catching her on the other side of the floo.

She wasn't sure how long she was lost inside herself before a comforting presence that she hadn't felt before soothed her, calming her and guided her back out again and found herself sitting on a window seat and a red head with sparkling blue eyes sitting beside her, an arm around her shoulders, her head leaning on his shoulder.

"It'll be alright Niya. We'll keep you safe now." His soothing voice told her softly.

"Has Charlie had any luck?" A faint male voice asked from beyond the door.

"I don't know yet, it's been four days. He's only been trying for a few hours, if he can't pull her out then we may have to send her to St Mungo's." A female voice replied sounding upset and at a loss. "It's a good thing that Daniel add that information about her in his will, or we would have had no idea what was wrong with her. I'm surprised that she is that strong an empath…" Her voice faded for a moment. "I think he's reached her, the waves of loss and grief have lessened…"

"Where?" Niya's voice was hoarse and her eyes felt too dry and sore.

"You are at the Burrow, Niya. I'm Charlie Weasley." He kept his voice low and soothing.

"I lost control didn't I?" She asked softly as he passed her a glass of water which she sipped gratefully.

"Yes you did. No one blames you for it, it is quite understandable. No one is in complete control after they find out they have lost some one they care for."

"How long?"

"Four days, it took me awhile to get time of work and get here." He replied rubbing soothing circles on her back. "You're going to have to take things easy for the next few days, your control is going to be shaky, through I think after a good solid meal and a good nights rest you are going to back to normal." He winced slightly.

"Don't worry I know what you mean." She said softly and gave him a small smile and slowly sat up, and looked around the room noting her trunk and two empty cages. "Where is Bassie and Merc?" She asked with a frown.

"Who?"

"My owl and kneazle." She replied gesturing to the empty cages as she finished off the water and poured herself another from a near by jug.

"Oh, well the kneazle is around some where, probably in the kitchen and your owl is outside flying about." Charlie replied, tucking her hair behind her ears. "You think you are ready to meet the family after washing up?"

"Yeah I think so." She nodded slightly finishing her second glass of water and let him lead her out of the room.

"Bathroom is in here." He gestured to the door. "Make sure you lock it, or some one might barge in on you." He chuckled faintly. "Just try and keep your shields up in this house there are a lot of people here." He advised her as she washed her hands and face and ran her fingers through her hair to tidied it up. "Most of them are rather emotional…well our whole family is rather temperamental."

"I'll keep that in mind." She nodded and let him guide her down the rickety stairs and they entered a kitchen where every single head was red.

"Niya, my dear, we are so glad that you are better." The red haired woman pulled her into a hug. "Now, you call me Molly or Mum, none of this Mrs Weasley business, have a seat and dig in." She was nudged into a chair. "Now this is my eldest Bill." She gestured to the mid twenties looking man with his hair tied back in a pony tail. "You met Charlie, these two are the Twins George and Fred, good luck if you can tell them apart, watch out for their pranks dear. This is Ron and Ginny. From what I hear you will be in Ron's year in September."

"Yes, Molly." Niya nodded eagerly digging into her food as Charlie sat down next to her.

"Now you let us know if you need anything, we were quiet surprised to hear that your father never told us that he survived the war. But I guess I can understand his reasons for going into hiding…"

Niya glanced up sharply at Molly, who just gave her an understanding smile. She turned back to her meal before leaning slightly towards Charlie. "Which one is Fred and which one is George?" She asked softly, eyeing the twins as they whispered to each other, their blue eyes twinkling in mischief.

"I can only tell them apart by the way that they feel." Charlie whispered back. "The one of the left is George and the one on the right is Fred. They are forever trying to confuse mum that they are the other. Most of the time she can't tell them apart."

"Hmm, Fred is worried about something." She tilted her head slightly glancing at the twin.

"Probably one of their projects." Charlie shrugged.

"Maybe." She murmured, turning back to her meal. She blinked as she was finishing as the whole family froze and went silent.

"What is that noise?" Molly asked with a frown.

Niya tilted her head before jumping out of her seat and racing out of the room and up the stairs to the room she had been placed in following the noise to a draw beside her bed and pulled out her mobile and answered it. "Hello?" She asked slightly out of breath.

"Niya?" A small timid voice that shook with tears asked, almost pleaded.

"Dray? What's wrong?" She demanded.

"I need your help…Father…" She heard him whimper.

"Where are you?" She asked calmly, trying to keep her mind from panicking.

"The park…usual spot…" He gritted out through painful breaths.

"Hold on I'll be there shortly okay?" She told him as she threw open her trunk and dug through it and pulled out a dark navy blue satchel and slung it over her shoulder. "Take slow breaths and I'll be there in a few minutes." She promised.

"Soon." He breathed, coughing slightly and hung up.

She tucked the mobile in her pocket and ran down the stairs, her wand she placed in the jacket she pulled on and stopped at the bottom of the stairs. She couldn't apparate and she didn't know if the floo was still connected to her old apartment.

"Molly is the floo still connected to my apartment?" She asked as she hurried into the kitchen as she made sure she had everything she needed in her bag.

"No dear it was disconnected two days ago." Molly shook her head. "Why? Arthur made sure that he brought everything with him."

"I need to meet some one rather urgently, they're in trouble and they can't get to me so I'm going to have to got to them and it'll take too long by Knightbus." She answered quickly and ran her hands through her hair in frustration.

"I've been to that area before." Fred spoke up looking up from his chat with his twin. "I could take you."

"Good as long as some one can get me to the park that's at the end of the block, that's all I need." She nodded and followed him out of the house and let him wrap his arms around her as she noticed that Bill and Charlie were right beside them and they disappeared and reappeared in the park with three large 'cracks'. She was off running through the park with the three red heads on her heels as she skidded into the clearing that she always met the guys and fell to her knees beside a bruised and bloody Dray. "Dray can you hear me?" She asked softly as she took off her bag and set it down beside her, gently rolling him over.

"Bloody hell it's Malfoy!" Fred exclaimed. "Your friends with the git?"

"Fred." Charlie warned and knelt down beside her.

Niya ran her hands gently over his arms and legs then his main body and his head, and fed him three potions before pulling out a thick pad of cloth and pushed it against his stomach. "Hold that." She said curtly as she dug through her bag again before pulling out another phial and gestured for him to lift it slowly and dribbled a small amount over the large wound. "Okay cover it up again." She pulled a jar of ointment out of her bag and gently rubbed it into his bruises. "Fred hold his shoulders down, Bill hold his legs, just be gentle but firm." She ordered as she grasped his left arm and gently probed his shoulder as they got into position, she nodded to them and they all winced at the crack they heard as she popped it back into place and the boy yelped his eyes snapping open and began fighting them. "Easy Dray, Easy." She said soothingly using her empathy to calm him quickly, as she ran her hand over his right arm, her hands glowing as she healed the fractures that she found and the gash across his cheek. "Slowly tell me what happened." She asked softly, letting her empathy and healing gifts lead her to where it was needed.

"Father came home angry, said I was no Malfoy, said I had screwed up and embarrassed him for the last time…" A tear slid down his cheek. "He disowned me Niya…" His eyes widened. "Haz" He struggled against the firm hands that held him in place.

"Whoa. Easy Dray what about Haz?"

"Attacking tonight, he said he would rise up from the shame that I caused by giving Haz to his master." She could feel the terror pouring off him.

"Who is Haz?" Bill asked in confusion.

"Harry…" Niya breathed. "Bill can you get to Dumbledore? Warn him that Harry is going to be attacked tonight."

"What is…."

"Not now Bill." Niya snapped. "Later when every one is safe and well." She breathed in sharply as pain flooded her and she caught a glimpse of Haz's green eyes.

"Niya focus on me." Charlie's hands gripped her shoulders tightly.

She caught the sight of flashes of colour.

"No time…" She gasped out. "Attacking now…" She glanced down at the scar in her palm and Dray's and it glowed green and red. "Harry…"

"Bill go now." Charlie snapped, "Fred stay here with Niya, once Malfoy is healed enough to be moved get them both back to the Burrow." Charlie ordered before disapparating with a loud crack, followed a second later by Bill.

"You're a healer aren't you?" Fred asked softly.

"Yes and an empath." She nodded slightly as she watched as the bruises began to slowly fade.

"What's with the scars?" He asked as she lifted the pad and checked on the wound before wrapping it in place.

"They are promises that we three made to each other, to look out for the other, to protect and help when needed." She glanced up at him. "You can't tell anyone Fred, at least not yet. It will be up to Dray and Haz to how much is told not me." She wrapped Dray's right wrist that was sprained and it could wait. "He's stable enough for us to move, now."

"Did he faint?"

"No, I gave him a strong pain killer and a sleeping potion. He'll be out for a few hours." She shook her head and slung her bag back over her head and gently cradled Dray to her chest as Fred wrapped his arms around her again and there was the discomfort of being squeezed before the loud crack and the landed in the lounge. She gently picked him up with Fred's help and set him on the couch and kept looking him over.

"Charlie?" Molly hurried into the room. "Fred where are your brothers and…" She broke off as she spotted Niya tending Dray. "What happened?"

"His father got mad at him and beat him and disowned him…though I am not too sure on that last fact" Fred replied his hands stained with blood.

"Molly can I have a basin of warm water and a cloth, with any liquid stitches you may have?" Niya requested with out looking up as she pulled off the padding on Dray's stomach and tossed it on to the floor, ripping his clothes apart to get a better look at the wound. Molly just hurried off. "Fred can you gently rub this into any bruises and grazes you find?" She asked softly handing him the bruise balm, pointing to his legs.

"Sure."

Molly returned with the requested items. "If you need another batch I can have some here in a few moments." Molly offered, looking worried.

"I need more pain reducer potion, fever reducer, and blood replenisher. They should do me until I can find some where to set up a lab to make more." She replied, pulling a small brush out of her bag and dipped it into the sticky bluish potion and brush it over the open wound before holding it closed for a few moments and releasing it. She watched it with a critical eye even as Molly hurried off, making sure that it would hold before doing the same with a few other wounds that she could not heal strictly on power alone.

"Here you go dear." Molly said as she hurried back into the room with the requested potions.

"Thanks Molly." She looked up tiredly and smiled, and poured a blood replenisher down his throat.

"MOLLY" Arthur's voice yelled.

"Arthur what is it?" Molly ran back to the kitchen. "George, Fred pack up everything that you will all need, including Ron and Ginny we are moving to Headquarters. Hurry." Molly ordered as she hurried out of the kitchen and disappeared up the stairs. She came back down with nine trunks following her and disappeared again. "Niya call your pets dear I need them in their cages to transport them."

She let out a long loud whistle and both Bassie and Merc came in through the open front door. "We're leaving fellas." She told them both and chuckled as they both slipped into their cages and Molly hurried off with them.

"Read this dear" She held a piece of parchment in front of her face which she carefully read and kept in mind. "Can he be woken?"

Niya nodded and pulled another potion from her bag and waved it under his nose and smiled faintly as he groaned. "Dray wake up…we have to move. Read the parchment and keep it in mind." She told him gently as he opened his eyes blearily, his eyes narrowed as they focused on the parchment before he nodded.

"He is safe to move again?" Molly asked.

"Yes, but he'll need support." She nodded as they twins ran down the stairs with Ron and Ginny on their heels.

"What's that git doing here?" Ron exclaimed.

"Ron not now." Molly scolded him. "Into the floo, got straight to headquarters" She ordered and helped Niya get Dray up on to his feet.

"Dray I know it hurts but focus on the chant I taught you." Niya murmured softly, trying to block out his pain. She nodded to Molly as the pain dimmed a little and grabbed her bag and they half carried him to the floo.

Niya stepped into the fire her arms wrapped around his waist and Molly threw in the floo power and called out a destination that Niya didn't hear as Dray went limp in her arms. She tightened her hold on him.

She stumbled slightly and was glad that hands caught them both before they could fall and Dray was taken out of her grip and picked up by Charlie.

"Poppy is on vacation and no one can contact her" A strained male voice called out from out side the kitchen. "We have no contacts in St Mungo's and we need a healer."

"Niya?" Charlie looked at her and frowned at how tired she looked.

"Show me who and where." She nodded.

"Follow George and Fred. I'll take Malfoy up to a room to sleep."

"Here." She pulled another potion out of her bag. "His last one was nullified to get him here." She hurried after the twins up the stairs.

"I don't have any blood replenisher." A voice growled out.

"Here." She thrust the phial in to the long fingered hand as she was rushed into a room and set her bag down and stopped dead as she saw Haz laid out bleeding badly. "Oh Merlin, Haz…" She breathed.

"Who are you?" Some one growled.

"Our Cousin, she's a healer." Fred replied as she snapped herself out of her shock.

"Get him out of those clothes, I need to see where to work." She snapped out pulling out potions and laying them out, along with bandages. "I need a basin of warm water and cloths…Fred find my blue trunk and bring it in here." She paid no attention to the man in black as she ran her hands over Haz's body. "Who has medic training? Even a little will do" She asked with out looking up.

"I do." A silky voice answered from the man in black.

"Pour this over his stomach and his left arm." She thrust a potion into his hand. "And get this down his throat." Handing him a second one.

"Got your trunk." Fred announced as he hurried in.

She reached out and ran her fingers over the lock and flipped the lid open and rummaged through it pulling out a few more phials that were clearly labelled. She focused on getting the bleeding stopped and the breaks healed, the rest could wait until she was rested. The basin arrived and she dipped a few cloths in it before washing her hands, removing Dray's blood from her hands and washed his face and stomach, taking note of the phials that the man in black took and used so she knew what she didn't have to worry about and concentrated on the bone breaks and fractures, her hands glowing with power. "Fred, I might be woozy after this, I may even pass out, just get me to a room to rest and make sure that there is a bucket for me to throw up in later…I'm not used to doing two direct healings one after the other." She spoke distantly, her attention on the body in front of her.

"Two healings? Who else was injured?" came the distant voice.

"She healed Malfoy, he called her after he was nearly beaten to death by his father." Came the faint reply.

"Is he alright?" Came the silky question.

"He is stable and will heal with time." She replied softly. She wasn't sure how much time went by before she finally pulled away, swaying slightly and felt familiar hands gently stabilise her. "Give him a sleeping potion to sleep through the next few hours." She croaked with exhaustion, as those hands helped her up and into another room. The bucket was placed in her hands just as the nausea rose to the point she couldn't contain it and threw up her lunch before passing out into darkness.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"She's exhausted Albus, she has been through so much over the last five days. A lesser person would have been broken by the strain she has been under. To lose your father and then lose control of your gift all with in an hour…and then to find your best friends nearly dead…" Molly's voice sounded worried and motherly and she felt her hair brushed away from her forehead. "Severus says it's lucky she had those supplies in her trunk, he could make the potions directly with out having to return to Hogwarts or go out to buy them, saved a number of hours. Plus she had some he needed already made up so he didn't have to brew them." She sighed. "Her fever has broken, it's a good thing that Charlie was keeping such a close eye on her, she used nearly everything she had to heal those two."

"She knew what she was risking, Molly." A quiet whispery voice replied. The feelings that she got from the man was slightly confusing. There was pride, sadness, guilt, sorrow and relief. "We owe her those boys lives, even though she didn't do it for us. She cares for those two, deeply. It make me wonder how Harry managed to sneak off to visit her and how long they have been friends." Albus sighed. "From what Harry has told me they were friends in primary school, before he went to Hogwarts and she went to Beauxbaton. They kept in contact by owl and written letters over the years, a few visits over the breaks, though how he pulled those off I have no idea." The guilt and sorrow built up. "I do wish he had told me that his family had abused him, I would have found away to get him away from there, but all he would tell me was that he didn't want to go back and they hated him…I didn't know it was that bad Molly. I should have checked up on him over the years."

"Might have beens are no good, sir. Concentrate on the now and make the best of the second chance you have been given." Niya spoke up weakly.

"Wise advice from one so young, child." He chuckled lightly. "How are you feeling?"

"Like a week old kitten." She smiled weakly and pried open her eyes and saw the elderly old man sitting beside her bed, long white hair, long white beard, half moon glasses and twinkling blue eyes, dressed in a blue robe and a dark purple over robe. "Dray and Haz?"

"Draco is fine and moving around carefully, he has a few scars to show what he has been through. He is still a little tender but will be recovered by the end of the week. Harry, is also recovering nicely, he still has a few bruises and tender bones and confined to his bed, he should be up and about by the end of the week and fully healed by the end of the month." Albus replied as Niya eased herself up so she was sitting up and leaning against the pillows.

"How long was I out?" She asked accepting glass of water and slowly sipped the first half to ease her throat before gulping the rest.

"Three days. You exhausted yourself to help them, you almost slipped into a coma and died, if Charlie hadn't been checking up on you and fed you a energy replenisher." He told her in a tone that she knew that he was scolding her.

"If I hadn't done what I had Haz would have died. I only fixed what I had too, he was gravely injured, he would have died if I hadn't been a healer with power to call on." She answered him accepting the refill that Molly gave her with out a word.

"I am truly grateful that you did manage to save Harry and Draco, but they are not worth your life." Molly finally spoke up. "I see Harry as a seventh son but that wouldn't have been worth your life."

"They are both worth it Molly." Niya turned her sight to the woman. "They are both powerful, strong willed and still whole even after everything that they have been through in their lives. They may bend and sway but they never fall or break. They are my friends, my only friends that accepted me for who I am and what I can do, just as I have done for them. We have helped each other through the worst and the best times, we keep each other moving and remembering that there is some one out there that cares." Tears prickled her eyes and slid down her cheeks. "Some times that is all that keeps them going, knowing that I am there to lean on if they need me, knowing that they don't have to ask, just with a look I can know what they need. So close…so close to shattering, but never breaking." She choked out, dropping her head into her hands. She struggled to get her shields back in place.

"Niya…your shields are down aren't they?" Molly asked in concern.

"Can't…" Niya choked out.

"I'll get Charlie." Albus murmured and shuffled out of the room quickly.

"Niya…concentrate" Charlie's soothing words reached her.

"Can't sense…" She tried to get out again.

"If she is a powerful empath and healer there is probably certain people she needs to keep in physical contact on a regular basis, to keep herself stable, and reassure herself that those people are alright subconsciously." Charlie spoke softly.

"Who?"

"Probably Draco and Harry. As more people come in to her life and she comes to care for them and comes connected to them then the more people she will have to support her." Charlie replied.

"Take her to Harry's room, I'll shoo the others down to breakfast and get Draco." Molly said.

Niya felt herself picked up and carried, trying in vane to calm her sobs, even as her gifts reached out searching. She was settled down on a bed and arms enveloped her from both sides and felt her gifts connected and she felt her shields slowly rising and her sobs slowed. She sensed some one move away that was needed and whimpered.

"Charlie stay." Haz's voice spoke up tiredly.

"This isn't the first time you've had to do this is it?" Molly's voice asked.

"No, it usually happens right at the beginning of summer when we first meet up, she just breaks down." Haz's voice slowly strengthened, but still sounded tired. "Though it usually doesn't take her this long to settle down."

"There still might be some one missing that she needs to connect to." Charlie spoke up. "Maybe the Twins…She seemed drawn to them at lunch."

"I'll see if I can find them." Molly offered and hurried off.

"I must admit that I've never heard of a Healer needed connections with certain people." Albus commented quietly.

"Yes but she is more then just a healer, she is also an empath, a strong one, stronger then me. Empaths make connections with people over time, when they sense that there is something that, that person has that they need and that they are needed for that person. It is all subconscious, we have no control over it. It's why I have to come home at least three times a year." Charlie explained. "If they are strong enough and need a person enough they can call that person to them and vice versa."

"That's how she knew Harry needed her." Albus commented.

"Partly, sir." Harry spoke up. "We are bound by her healing and empathy, she has patched us both up a few times. It kinda happened by accident, one time she had a cut on her palm from work and our blood mingled. If the need is great enough it triggers an effect to the point she can get glimpses of what is happening." He admitted a little sheepishly. "She is connected to both Dray and me that way, it also make it easier for her to call us when she needs us." He glanced down at Niya. "We felt your call last week, but I couldn't get away." He grimaced. "They came home early and with out warning."

"That would have been when she lost control." Charlie commented as the twins slipped into the room.

"It's been years since she lost control…what happened?" Draco finally spoke up, sounding concerned and worried.

"My father died." Niya spoke up, sniffing and accepted the tissues that Fred handed her, "I knew that something was wrong, I got the confirmation not an hour after we left the park."

"Merlin, I'm sorry Niya." Haz hugged her a little tighter, along with Dray.

"It took Charlie four days to pull her out again, mainly because it took him two days to get back to the Burrow." Molly said softly. "We were at a loss at how to help her, I'm just thankful that her father added instructions on what to do if anything like that happened in his will." There was a long pause. "Are you alright now dear?"

"Yes, Molly, I'll be fine now. Sorry I broke down." She flushed a little. "It happens when I exhaust myself."

"How often do you need contact? With out breaking down?" Albus asked.

"Once every three months, once a month if I have been doing a lot of healing." She replied with a small shrug. "I usually don't have to worry about it, I was trained at Beauxbaton but they rarely needed me to heal major injuries and that all they asked me to do for them as they knew it was a strain as I was learning." She explained. "I was usually only need once a year, usually at the end of year at the final Quidditch match."

"Have you finished your training?" Albus inquired.

"Yes, I just need practice to work up stamina." She nodded. "The more practice I get the longer and more I will be able to heal."

"Would you be will to be on stand by for the infirmary?" He asked. "It would give you the training you need, there are always injuries after quidditch games."

"That would be a help yes." She nodded in agreement. "I'll need to do up a list of potion ingredients that I'll need to make more potions that I use regularly when I heal."

"That can be arranged…I'm afraid that Severus used most of the ones you had left to make a few that he found that he needed. I can send him out to get more to replace what he used and to restock what you need." Albus nodded.

"I have money in my trunk to pay for what I need. I usually use my free time in the summer to restock, it costs me a lot but I don't mind because I can help others." She shrugged.

"If you write up a list I can send him out after lunch and if he isn't available then I'll find some one else." Albus nodded.

"Right now that everything is sorted, are you all ready to head down for breakfast?" Molly asked with a smile as several stomachs rumbled in agreement with that thought. "Everyone down stairs then, Harry you can join them if you think you can manage it, and rest for awhile. I'm sure Ron will be glad of some company."

"I think I can do that." Harry nodded.

It wasn't long before Niya was digging into a large breakfast of bacon, eggs, toast, fruit and juice, while writing out a list of what she could remember she needed along with the quantities that she wanted. As soon as she was finished she had the twins lead her back to her room to double check and added more to her list a little surprised that nearly everything was gone. She pulled out a large pouch of money and quickly counted out what money she had before digging through another trunk and pulled out more money.

"Do you really" Fred started.

"Think that it will" George continued.

"Cost that much." Fred finished.

"It usually does when I restock." She nodded as she placed all the money into one pouch and followed them back down.

"Ah Niya, this is Professor Snape, our Potions Master."

"Nice to meet you sir." She nodded in greeting, finally getting a name to go with the man in black.

"Your potions are extremely well made Ms Jackson, and your skills are quite a rare and a privilege to watch." He nodded in return.

"Severus has offered to gather the ingredients you need." Albus's eyes twinkled brightly.

"I wrote out a list and the quantities that I need, if you are going to the apothecary in Diagon Alley just say it is a total restock for Ms Jackson and hand over the list. They know me quite well there." She smiled faintly as she handed over the pouch and the list.

"This is quite the list you have here Ms Jackson, I presume that you know how to brew the potions by yourself?" He asked with a slight sneer.

"Quite well thank you Sir. I find that if I brew them myself they work better. I guess it's because as I am brewing them I tend to add some of my healing power to them on instinct and it makes them much more potent." She nodded. "I've gotten the highest scores in potions over the years in the entire school, bar first year that is." She shuddered slightly. "That was just a disaster."

"We shall see, I know from the potions you already made that they are well made, but I would like to see you make them for myself and judge where you are to see if it is necessary for you to do potions at all." He nodded slightly and left the room with a sharp snap of his robes.

"Hmm…" Niya's eyes narrowed slightly as she watched him leave. She sensed that he meant what he said, more so then his face said he did. "Tricky man, mask wearer, never says what he means, most would see him as snide, cruel and cold." She muttered to herself, her head tilted slightly. "Must recommend that he try my headache cure…" she mumbled making her way to where she could hear Dray and Haz were, forgetting Albus's presence entirely and missed his chuckle of amusement and the blinding twinkle.

Niya was in the middle of a chess game with Ron when Charlie stuck his head into the room.

"Niya, Professor Snape is back with your supplies, he said he'll show you to the potion lab that has been set up here." Charlie spoke up as she made her move.

"Right, well just as well I already lost this game." She smiled at Ron as she stood up and followed Charlie out into the hall and spotted the professor standing in the hall with her blue trunk hovering beside him. She followed him with out a word as he lead her to an unused part of the first floor and opened a door that had a door leading down and she followed him into the underground room taking in the room. It was the right temperature, the right light being cast and everything was organised.

"You have your own cauldrons I take it?" He asked snidely.

"Yes sir, I have everything that I need." She nodded as her trunk settled on the ground gently and she opened it up and pulled out a box and pulled out a number of cauldrons of different sizes and metals, different spoons, knives, jars of which most were empty.

"You may set up your supplies on this empty side bench here and arrange it as you want it." He pointed out the bench in question sounding as if he wanted to be anywhere but here, but the emotions coming off him told her the opposite.

"Thank you sir." She lined up the cauldrons according to size and metal before setting up the jars ready to be filled as he enlarged a box from his pocket. "Did I supply enough money sir?" She asked politely as she quickly and efficiently sorted out the ingredients into their proper jars and with out spilling a single thing.

"More than enough, as they were out of phoenix tears and dragon scales. The Headmaster kindly arranged to have his phoenix supply the tears in the quantities that you wanted and Charlie supplied the dragon scales. Both refused payment."

"I guess I am lucky then, as most of my rapid healing potions need the tears. I'll have to thank all three when I am done for the day." She nodded slightly as she quickly finished up with the supplies. Out of the corner of her eye she caught him pinch the bridge of his nose and with out a word she handed him a small brown coloured phial as she began setting up ingredients and cauldrons for different potions on three different desks. She saw him raise an eyebrow at her as she started the first one. "For your headache." She answered his unspoken question. "The only side effect is an increase of energy and the need to do things. Perfect for when you have to make potions as it keeps your hands busy and your mind free if you know the potion well enough." She shrugged, easily getting all three started and adding ingredients with out having to hurry. She saw him debate with himself for a few moment before downing it and began setting up his own cauldron.

"I went through your records that Beauxbaton sent over and was surprised that with your scores that there was no essays or proof that you earned your marks for the last two years." He commented as if to himself.

"Mainly because I was making all the potions for the hospital wing and on the odd occasion teaching the class when the professor was sick, I helped her to mark the other students work during the holiday breaks, helped her with research and experiments. That headache potion was one of the ones she helped me make, she was quite pleased with it." She smiled into her cauldron feeling his astonishment and his disbelief. "We actually found that giving that potion to students to recover from their headaches actually led them to study and do better for it, but it only works if there is actually a headache…she did insist that we test that." She shrugged slightly.

"And did your professor send the potion off to the potion Master's guild?" He inquired.

"Yes sir." She nodded adding a few ingredients to two of the cauldrons and stirring them at the same time at the correct speed and timing. "That's when they insisted that I become an apprentice."

"I must admit that you are showing the skills of a Master." He said grudgingly.

"I go for my Masters during the Christmas break." She admitted with a slight shrug.

"What year did you start your apprenticeship?" He asked sounding a little startled.

"Second year. Even I admit that the first half of first year was a disaster before I got the hang of things and studied every potions book I could get my hands on so I could understand it better, I also asked for tutoring. I made that headache potion during third year. Believe it or not it was actually an accident it was supposed to be a concussion cure, so in one sense I failed the set assignment but I got top marks for creating a new potion that worked well." She shrugged slightly. "It took a few months but the professor actually found that I worked better with out written instructions, and worked with my senses."

"How so?" He asked most of his concentration on the potion he was working.

"Because of my healing gift I can judge exactly how much of an ingredient is needed, after reading up on the potion and handling it a few times with out actually reading how it is made. It is actually easier for me to make potions for a specific person, then en masse like I usually make. Especially if I have touched the person it is for or healed them before or know them really well." She explained. She some times found it hard to explain exactly how she did things to a person who didn't know her or seen her at work. She left the second cauldron to simmer and focus on the first one.

"Have you ever tried the Wolfsbane potion?" He enquired and she could feel his curiosity.

"No, the professor told me that it would probably be set for my Masters test, I am only familiar with what has been written about it but not how it feels or smells." She shook her head, adding a phoenix tear to the first cauldron and stirring it eight times clockwise before taking it off the flame and setting it to the side to cool and turned to the third cauldron.

"So in theory you could improve a potion after studying both receiver and the potion it's self?" he questioned.

"Yes, after all each person is different and reacts differently to each ingredient differently. Back it takes time to tailor each potion, it's not exactly some thing I have time for when at school unless it is needed." She nodded, she glanced up at him as she sensed his emotions dim a little and saw him studying her.

"You've given me a bit to think about, I'll have to contact the guild to see what they say, you maybe able to help me with one of my potions that I have been trying to get right for some years." He turned back to his potion.

She didn't say anything and for the next six hour they spent in silent work. She only stopped when a potion was at a waiting point and poured previously made potions it phials and jars, labelled and stored on the shelf.

"Are you near a stopping point?" He asked some time later interrupting the comfortable silence.

"Just about sir." She nodded not really paying attention as she finished off another potion and set about pour it out into phials and setting the dirty cauldron in a sink to be cleaned, she quickly labelled the potion and set it on the shelf and busied her self by cleaning the several cauldrons that were stacked up and then thoroughly cleaned her hands and face, removing the apron she had donned to prevent splashes from ruining her clothes and followed him back to the kitchen and was a little surprised to see dinner being served. "Dinner…what happened to lunch?" She asked with a little confusion, the time didn't seem to add up in her head.

"You worked straight through it dear." Molly smiled at her as she set a plate down in front of her even as Professor Snape disappeared through the floo. "We tried knocking on the door but no one answered, we figured that you were too busy to answer it and would come out when you got hungry enough."

"I didn't hear it, I didn't even notice that it was so late." She shook her head slightly. "I guess that's why my old professor always insisted make potions beside me, I loose track of time. Father once complained that I disappeared for three days and I didn't even notice it had been that long." She sighed. "After that he installed an alarm in the lab, that set it's self every time I entered for eight hours so I would taken notice of the time and leave to eat and sleep."

"Sounds like Severus has found a kindred soul then." Albus chuckled from the other end of the table.. "He is the same, that is why he does not brew during class."

"So did he hover?" Dray asked dryly, even as Haz and Ron snickered.

"No, he was busy making his own potions." She shook her head. "The only thing that we talked about was my potions education…well more like I talked and he listened and tried not to look too stunned." She shrugged.

"Snape stunned? Yeah right." Ron snorted.

"Professor Snape, Ron." Molly scolded him.

"Why was he so shocked he read your records" Albus inquired.

"I don't think he believed them, he said there was no written proof of the marks, so I explained how I got them." She shrugged, and smiled slightly as Albus's eyes twinkled brightly.

"Oh he must have been quite surprised by that…did you inform him about your second year?" Albus asked letting out a small chuckle, Niya felt it as a large wave of amusement.

"Yes Sir, he was quite shocked, but he understood how and why after I explained a few things." She nodded.

"What could shock Severus? Besides a student actually be able to make a potion when he is hovering behind them?" A amber eyed man asked, mischief glowing in his eyes. Niya could feel the beginnings of discomfort and pain.

"That Niya here is an apprentice to the Potions Masters Guild and should complete her Masters in December." Albus told them with a chuckle.

"But it takes six years to complete…" The man blinked.

"She started in her second year. Quite a talented young lady." He turned his sights to her. "I must admit that your records are quite impressive, I am not sure that we have anything left to teach you…I must admit that your professors and headmistress did confess something to me to pass on to you."

"And what was that?" Niya asked with a raised eyebrow, doubting that they could have pulled anything on her with out her sensing it.

"The exams you took a few weeks back?"

"What about them?" She asked blank faced.

"Well they weren't the mock exam…"

Niya blinked and felt the stunned disbelief from every one in the room. "I'm sorry?"

"It was the real thing with a few extra bits thrown in, most of your teachers admitted that you were beyond most of the students and they were giving you harder work to do to keep you occupied. There was only a few classes you were average in and that was Divination, Ancient Runes, Arithmancy, Astronomy and History of Magic and a little above average at DADA and COMC."

"Well that just leaves, Charms, Potions, Transfigurations, Herbology and my Mediwitch training." She blinked

"Yes, in those five classes you tested heavily, more so then others. While they weren't exactly NEWTS they weren't Master tests either you did quite well." He slid the envelope down to Bill and it was passed from person to person until it reached her and she opened it and blinked. "In those five classes you got double distinctions, and the others were E's, well with one W."

"What did you get the Woeful on?" Molly asked with a slight frown.

"Divination." Niya snickered. "I never like the class, but my professors insisted that I take it to take up some free time so I wasn't always in the lab. Well I almost got a W on Astronomy." She shrugged.

"You took all twelve classes for your NEWTS?" Hermione asked in a small voice.

"Well I had no friends, I had nothing else to do but study. I couldn't be around many of the Veela's at Beauxbaton because they are so emotional, being around them in class was hard enough so I spent a lot of my time in my rooms which was heavily warded so I could be some where with my shields down." She explained with a small shrug. "That and I don't sleep much, my healing gift automatically gives me a boost when I start to get a little tired, I only need two to four hours sleep a day at the most. There is nothing we can do to counter it, believe me we tried. But it doesn't cause that many problems providing I rest and I have something to do."

"How are you going to handle Hogwarts then? It is much more emotional then Beauxbaton as there are more students and more upheaval every day." The amber eyed man asked in concern.

"The same way I did at Beauxbaton, heavily warded rooms." She shrugged. "But if I have done my NEWTS sir is there really a point to me attending?" She asked.

"Well it would give you a chance to complete you Apprenticeship under a Master, but I do see your point." Albus admitted. "I had most of it all planed out until I received your results and had a nice chat with your Headmistress."

"If you are all done you can all clean up the mess you all made in the sitting room." Molly told the others pointedly as she began collecting up empty plates, bring Niya's attention back to her half eaten meal and went back to eating, thinking about her options. Not that she had a lot.

She could got to Hogwarts and attend lessons she had already passed and study for her Master test or she could stay behind and work on her potions getting her stocks up, which would only keep her occupied for a few weeks…though she could work on the research part of her apprenticeship, like she had been wanting to for some time. Truly commit herself to working on improving some potions and see if with her healing gift she could work some cures that St Mungo's had been trying for.

She barely noticed when her plate was taken away and replaced with pudding, or that she had eaten seconds.

"Niya what would like to do?" Albus asked breaking her out of her musings. "You can attend Hogwarts, which in a way would be a waste of your time or you could concentrate on your potions and healing."

"If as you say there is little point to attending Hogwarts I think I would like to concentrate on the potions and healing Sir." She spoke slowly toying with the idea. "It will probably take me up until September to restock everything that I will need for emergencies and healings that I may be needed for, there are potions that I would like to experiment with to see if I can improve and create. I am willing to be on call if you need me for healings and I have no problem with that as it will keep me in practice and help me improve." She added with a little more enthusiasm.

"Very well, I am sure that Molly will make sure that you appear for meals and take breaks from the lab. I am sure that we can rig something up in the lab that will catch your attention if we need you for healing and something else as an alarm to remind you to eat and sleep…though I think Harry and Draco will be a little disappointed that you wont be attending." He nodded in understanding. "Just remember that it would not be wise to venture out to Diagon Alley on your own, it would be best if you get an adult to go at least until you are seventeen and are able to use magic with out coming to the attention of the Ministry."

"I understand sir." She nodded and broke into a yawn.

"You should go rest Niya, you've had an exhausting week, catch up on some sleep so you'll be fresh when you start your next batch of potions." Molly suggested.

"Good idea." Niya nodded and stood up. "Thank you Sir for the choice."

"It was no problem my dear child." Albus smiled. "And please call me Albus."

"Yes Sir." She nodded before heading out to the lounge room and found the others talking quietly.

"So what did they decide?" Dray asked as he spotted her.

"That I wouldn't be attending Hogwarts but rather concentrating on potions and healing instead here." She told him, covering another yawn. "You and Haz should head to bed early, you are still healing. I'll check you over in the morning see if anything else can be done." She added before waving and heading up to her room, changed clothes and fell into bed.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Niya woke to a dark room and a silent house. She laid still for a moment taking stock of how she felt and checking her shields before she slid out of bed, calling out a soft 'Lumos' to light the room and dug through her brown trunk for clean clothes and her toiletries before silently peeking through different doors to find the bathroom. She felt much better after a long hot shower, dressed and made her way back to her room and spent an hour unpacking her clothes and things she knew she would need on a regular basis.

She smiled faintly as she spotted Merc and Bassie sound asleep on the other side of her room undisturbed by her movements, well used to her moving about in the dead of night. She placed a few photos frames around the room of her and her father and of her, Dray and Haz before making way silently down to the kitchen for tea and something to eat after turning off the lights.

She was a little surprised to see the amber eyed man and Shaklebolt talking quietly in front of the fire, mugs of tea clasped in their hands.

"Up a little early aren't we Ms Jackson?" Shacklebolt commented as he spotted her.

"I don't sleep much." She shrugged pouring herself some tea and sitting down at the table. "And please call me Niya, I got enough 'Ms Jackson' at school" She requested with a small face of distaste. "It sounds so impersonal."

"I think in all the rush yesterday that you weren't introduced to many of the people here. This is Remus Lupin." He gestured to his companion.

"A pleasure to meet you Sir." She nodded her head politely over her mug.

"Call me Remus please. I never got the chance to thank you for helping Harry…" Remus replied.

"No need for thanks Remus. I would do it for any one that I considered a friend, or a person in need." She cut off his thanks with a smile, tightening her shields a little against the feelings of pain and discomfort he was putting out. He looked tired and pale, his face slightly lined with pain if you knew what to look for. "What is the time?"

"Nearly three am, no one else will be up for a good three or four hours yet." Remus answered picking up the pot of tea and poured out the last of it for Shacklebolt before rising and preparing another pot. "Are you hungry?"

"A little yes…if you show me where everything is I'll happily make myself some thing to eat…" She smiled. "At least that way I can help my self later with out having to worry about anyone else being up to find everything."

"Well actually I think the only food at the moment is a loaf of bread and some eggs, some one will have to go out tomorrow and restock." Remus admitted with a faint shrug and pulled out the loaf of bread and toasted it for her with his wand putting butter and a few jars of jam on the table. "How many you want?"

"Four will do me thanks." She replied taking a bite of the first slice. "What will the others be doing to keep occupied?" She asked making short work of her breakfast. "I'm pretty sure that Dray and Haz have finished their summer home work."

"Dray and Haz?" Remus raised an eyebrow.

"Oh sorry." She chuckled. "My nicknames for Draco and Harry."

"Well I don't think we have anything planned for them." Remus replied after a nod of understanding and putting the bread away.

"Trust me if you don't want them going mad with boredom and keep them out of trouble find something for them to do, because if they are going to be stuck in side with little to do other then homework and chores they are all going to get bored pretty fast for a month and half before school starts." She advised. "But then again you probably know what Harry is like when he isn't occupied with something." She shrugged.

"Well not really no. I know he has a small gift for getting into trouble on a regular basis and nearly every time it isn't his fault." Remus shook his head.

"Well do your self and him a favour keep him busy, it'll keep him from brooding over things, the same for Dray."

"What do you suggest?" Shacklebolt asked with a raised eyebrow. "Because Molly has been racking her brains out trying to think of something and the only thing she is coming up with is chores."

"I'm not sure, extra tutoring in a favourite class, which would be a bit hard if most of them aren't already seventeen…umm" She frowned thinking swirling her half empty mug of tea. "Well Dray loves researching things on potions and carves beautiful pieces out of wood, Haz loves to draw and has quite an interest in Animagi, defence spells he likes learning about and Magical Creatures, loves to fly, has a bit of skill with carving and metal and jewellery making." She listed the things she knew that they liked to do. "I am not sure if they have supplies to continue on with their hobbies, I know that Dray has nothing unless he managed to sneak out with his trunk. I'm pretty that Haz would love lots of paper for his sketches and metals and gems for his jewellery making." She looked up from her mug and chuckled silently to herself as she saw Remus writing down what she was saying. "As for the others…I'm not sure I don't know them, except for what Dray and Haz have told me about them. Ron, chess and quidditch, Hermione, books and research and to understand what she doesn't know about the Wizarding world. I'm not sure at all about Ginny. But the twins when they aren't working on their shop experiment with new pranks." She glanced up at the roof of the kitchen as she felt a spike of dread and fear. "Were any of my potions brought up from the lab?" She asked innocently.

"Yes, Severus brought up a selection shortly after you retired for the night." Remus nodded and pointed to a cupboard above the sink.

She walked over and opened the little door and browsed through the three dozen phials, before plucking out four. Two very mild calming draughts and two mild sleeping potions that would either block dreams all together or promote good dreams and was not addictive. She had made this one with Haz in mind after hearing about his nightmares that he had on a regular basis and easily adapted it for everyday use for up to a week and for anyone to be able to use it. "Be back in a minute." She said softly slipping out the door and made her way back up the stairs and followed the distress to a room with faint light filtering under the door and tapped softly on the door and slipped in.

Haz was huddled in a ball at the head of his bed, his shoulder shaking violently but silently. On the bed across the room Ron slept on unaware and Dray shifted uneasily.

"Haz…" She spoke softly and sent out soothing and calming waves as she perched on the side of his bed, rubbing his back gently as he slowly calmed and uncurled. She handed him the calming draught first and just held him, letting him cry himself out. "Do you want a sleeping potion?" She asked softly. "I upgraded it from the last one I gave you, a little bit stronger then the last one." She held out the violet phial in her hand, letting him decide if he wanted it. She let him take it after a few moments of thinking about it. "Let me know if it is strong enough and if it's not I'll tinker with it again." She kissed his forehead as he passed her the empty phial and puled his blankets back over him and made her way over to Dray sensing that he was in fact awake. She laid the second sleeping potion on his little beside table. "Your choice if you take it or not Dray." She whispered so only he could hear her and made her way back down to the kitchen, replacing the calming draught that she had used.

"Who's having nightmares?" Remus asked quietly, Shacklebolt absent. "I'm guessing that is was you sensed."

"Haz and Dray. They both have had nightmares for years, and each year I try making different potions to help them sleep even a little with out them, even if it's only for three hours," She sighed and sat back down murmuring her thanks as he refilled her mug. "Last year I made a sleeping potion that promoted good dreams rather then suppressing them, in its current form it works but it's not strong enough for Haz to last more then two hours."

"And on Dray?"

"Three, maybe four hours, five at the most which is I admit better then nothing and at least he can function on five hours sleep with out making too many mistakes or looking too tired." She shook her head. "I've been trying for the last three months to increase the good dreams for at least seven hours before waking them feeling refreshed and rested…"

"And the difficult part would be?" Remus smiled with understanding at how hard it was to do just that.

"The bad and difficult part is making it so it isn't addictive and they can take it for up to a week or even two with out any side effect." She made a face. "At the moment I am half way there, I got the good dreams part, and will let them sleep peacefully for four hours but can only be taken for three days before it has to be shelved for a week before it can be taken again." She rubbed her forehead. "Haz and Dray offer to test them for me when ever I have a new one and tell me to effect it has over the three days they take it, so I can adjust it…" She pulled a piece of parchment out of her pocket. "I also have them monitored so if they do have a bad reaction I can do something about it…though it's rare that I do have some one have a bad reaction to a potion that I have made as I can sense if they are going to react to it…but it has happened a few times for unknown reasons." She flushed slightly as she realised that she was babbling and to a stranger at that. "Sorry don't mean to bore you with the details."

"I don't mind at all." Remus chuckled. "I can tell that it means a lot to you and that you take it hard when something fails…it's all written there on your face…and I have no problems listening Niya."

"Thank you." She nodded and pulled a note book out of her pocket and wrote out a few things. "This is the instructions for Haz and Dray for the day. I checked them over when I was up there. It's pretty self explanatory, just make sure that they follow it…and make sure some one calls me up for lunch"

"Will do, Severus should already be down there." He nodded.

"Right." She murmured to herself and made her way to the lab, nodded a greeting to the Professor and began setting up cauldrons and ingredients for her next batch.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Niya it's time for lunch" Professor Snape's voice cut into her minds concentration and she glanced up from the blood replenisher she had been working on for the last four hours, along with the calming draught and Bruise Salve. The last two were waiting to be bottled, the third needed another twenty minutes of attention.

"I'll go up when I finish this, Sir." She nodded, while mentally running through what she had already made. Sleeping draughts, headache cures, Bruise Salve, calming draughts, burn balm, Pain free draught and the blood replenisher, which meant she still had nine more to make. "I should be done in twenty minutes."

"Molly mentioned something for the brats to do if they misbehave." He said casually as he cleaned up his work space. "They get to come down here and clean cauldrons for a few hours."

"Well that is one way to make them behave." She chuckled slightly. "Knowing them we should have the twins and Ron down here by tomorrow."

"Not Potter?" Snape raised an eyebrow at her.

"He doesn't have the energy to make trouble at the moment, though by the end of the week he will and he has other things to keep him occupied." She shrugged, turning her attention from the simmering thing orange potion to the other waiting cauldrons and steadily poured them out into their containers and labelling them before pulling the burn balm off the heat and letting it cool on it's own, she could bottle it when she returned from lunch and set the dirty cauldrons next to the sink and rinsed them out.

She wrinkled her nose as she finally noticed the smell in the room. "What are you making…" She frowned a little as the smell seemed familiar. "I know that smell…Aconite…your making Wolfsbane?"

"Yes, making one for consumption and tinkering with the other." He nodded as they washed their hands and faces thoroughly. "I'm trying to find away to add a more potent pain reducer to the mix with out upsetting the balance of the other ingredients and that will work." He explained.

"Hmm…" She pulled her note book out of her pocket and flicked through the pages to the notes she had taken on the Wolfsbane potion. "I would be able to make a better judgement if I could study a werewolf before, during and after the transformation. I read everything that my Professor gave me and then some on it. I know that it's incredibly delicate, even one fleck too much of an ingredient would make it unstable." She frowned reading through her notes as they exited the lab.

"Well you can have your chance to study one before the transformation." He smirked at her. "Lupin is one."

"Hmm that explains the dull pain and discomfort I've been sensing from him…" She muttered to herself. "When is the full moon?"

"Five days away, I just finished the drinkable batch for Lupin to take yesterday, so he has had his first dose." He replied before the entered the kitchen where everyone was already eating and she took a seat next to him setting her note book to one side. "I'm sure that I can arrange for you to observe if you need to if you think there is a chance that you can supply so input."

"Well I won't know until I try." She shrugged. "If I remember correctly because of the wolfsbane instability the drinker can take no other potion while taking it as it disrupts the results of a human mind in the wolf…" She said thoughtfully, both were speaking in low tones that the others couldn't hear. "I wonder if instead of adapting the potion I can adapt one of my others so it can be taken at the same time, to compliment it…it would have to be something that lasted for hours at a time…wasn't addictive…" She trailed off pulling a quill out of her hair, adding a few notes and ideas on a new page, absently eating as she wrote, paying absolutely no attention to what was going on around her.

"What is she up to Severus?" Molly asked quietly from the his other side.

"I'm not exactly sure. We were discussing the wolfsbane potion and how to add a pain reducer to it and then mid debate she went off on a tangent and spaced out." He shrugged not concerned, as he had done the same thing on occasion when working on a new potion.

"She also does her best sensing when she is distracted by research." Dray spoke up just as quietly. "Her readings are very accurate, as her mind doesn't interfere with her healing gift and instinct."

Haz made a face as Niya absently pulled a phial from her pocket and handed it to him. "Drink it" She said curtly. "Next time don't ignore the pain, say something." She snapped, her eyes and quill never leaving the pages she was working on.

"Is it just me or has some of the tension and restlessness left the room?" Remus added from Niya's side.

"It's Niya. Once she is immersed in her work she left instinct take over completely. Her empathy sooths and calms while her healing, energises, refreshes, and reads people. She knows with in minutes of what a person needs, what they can take for it or if there is anything she can do." Haz informed them with a small shrug. "It's not something she could stop if she wanted to, but as it comes in hand for when she is making potions she doesn't try that hard. It's automatic, just like her healing refreshing her when she is tired, and packing everything she needs to recover in to four hours sleep."

"And how do you know all this?" Remus asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Niya made sure that we know all the details of what to do or not to do when she is work and sleeping." Dray replied refilling his pumpkin juice. "So if anything happened while we were with her we would know what we could do. But once she is off on a research tangent there is nothing to be done until she is finished, some one needs her whole attention for healing or she and others are in danger."

"Hmm none of that was in her records, and would have been handy to know before hand." Albus murmured. "How long do these tangents last?"

"Hours, days…" Dray shrugged. "She'll stop when either she has the potion made to her like and knows that it works, or she reaches a dead end."

"Hmm we are definitely going to have to install some sort of alarm system in the lab to get her attention for meals." Molly rolled her eyes.

"Oh she'll eat, especially if it's only research." Haz chuckled. "You just put food with in reach and she'll eat it down with out even noticing."

"Good to know that she won't starve then." Molly chuckled.

"She told us that it took her potion's professor and the Mediwitch two years to train it into her to do automatically." Dray chuckled.

"Does she normally shift as she works?" Charlie asked watching Niya closely, it almost seemed as if she was sitting on something uncomfortable.

"It means her healing gift is working at trying to decipher something, or found something that it didn't expect." Haz nodded.

"Sounds as if we are going to spend the next few hours learning about her habits at different stages." Molly said as she collected up the plates and set them down in the sink to wash themselves. "Oh that reminds me, Severus you have the dubious joy of have the twins scrubbing cauldrons tonight." She glared at the boys as they groaned. "It's your own fault for scaring Harry when you knew that was injured. You can have them for the next week, I don't care if you two are adults. If you want to be treated like adults then act like it."

"It wasn't that bad Molly…" Haz murmured and then flushed as Niya snorted.

"Is she actually paying attention?" Charlie asked with an amused look.

"No, well not really, she hears everything but she doesn't. Her reactions are instinct and natural." Dray shook his head. "And can be brutally honest."

"Not that bad Harry?" Molly scolded him. "You fell down the stairs…What did she give you?" her frown deepened.

"Pain reducer" Dray answered for him as he looked down at the table. "He sprained his ankle and has a few more bruises to add to his collection."

"Dray!" Haz protested.

"Sprain my ass…" Niya muttered as she turned a page and continued writing. "Fractured ankle, sprained knee joint and two broken fingers."

"Three weeks in the lab." Molly ordered looking more then a little angry. "You two need to be more careful when you pull your bloody pranks." She blinked as a phial was placed in her hands and was told curtly to drink it.

"Getting emotional around Niya when she is on a tangent gets her annoyed and agitated." Dray shrugged. "If she is around people when she is working she tried to keep them all calm and happy, it makes it easier on her." He explained.

"Where exactly is she pulling them from?" Ron asked looking at Niya's robe.

"She has a pouch around her waist, filled with potions that she thinks that she needs on a regular basis, mainly Pain reducers, Headache cures, Calming draughts, bruise balm and sleeping draughts." Dray replied, rolling his eyes. "Most of them are the first three."

"When she is fully stocked she'll have another strapped to her thigh full of Blood replenisher, Skele-gro, Skin heal, Pepperup, Energy Replenisher and dreamless sleep." Haz added as Molly served up pudding.

"I'm heading to Diagon Alley tomorrow if anyone needs or wants anything." Remus spoke up as the conversation died down a little. "Have a list drawn up with money to go before you head to bed." He chuckled slightly as there was the sound of tearing paper and a quick list from Niya was thrust in to his hand with a small pouch of money.

"Too bad it's too early to have our book lists." Hermione sighed. "It would give me something to do."

"You could go through the library Hermione." Remus suggested with a smile. "All the…undesirable book have been removed."

"Early book lists might be arranged, if any of you wish to get studying early." Albus spoke up. "You'll have to wait for your results though, which makes it a little hard to buy the books you need." He admitted. "Though I am sure you all got into the classes you wanted and you could always do some independent study on a subject even if you don't get in to a class that you wanted."

"No that's not right…" Niya muttered scribbling out something and continued on writing going silent once more.

"I'm sure I can have a list done up…but none of us has money." Hermione pointed out.

"I think for this once I can place it on the account the school has at the shops." Albus chuckled. "Do not use that as an excuse to go over board on your selections, check the library first and make sure that we don't already have it." He warned gently.

"Yes sir." Hermione nodded before excusing herself and hurrying out of the room.

"Parchment for any one who wants to make a list of their own." Molly said as she dropped a pile of parchment on the table with self inking quills. "Draco, I forgot to ask do you have your trunk?" Molly asked looking concerned.

"Yes, Mrs Weasley." He nodded, picking up a sheet and writing a few things down with his name on the top and placed a small pouch of coins on the table. "My mother smuggled it out for me with everything I would need for the year."

"Good, at least we won't need to get you a new wardrobe then…Niya dear do you need clothes?" Molly asked her, as if the woman wasn't muttering to herself and writing furiously.

The list was pulled out of Remus's hands a few more things added and handed back, not seemingly noticing that her hand was still resting on the mans arm.

"Don't move or she'll get annoyed." Haz warned Remus as he went to move the hand. "She's reading you, so she'll know how you'll react to certain things. Eventually she'll do that with everybody, it make it easier for her to treat some one if she has had prior contact."

"Being Sunday and the shop is closed you two can spend the rest of the day in the lab doing what ever Professor Snape and Niya need you to do, until they release you for the night." Molly told the twins as they tried to sneak out of the room unnoticed.

"No offence to Niya or anything but how long is she going to be attached to me?" Remus asked with a chuckle.

"Until she releases you." Haz shrugged as he finished his own list and added his money before he stood up and sighed as a small tub the thrust at him. "Yes Niya, thank you Niya." He said with a roll of his eyes and looked at the label. "Oh good, bruise balm." He opened the jar and walked out of the room with Dray on his heels as he lifted his shirt rubbing it on his ribs.

"Well at least we know that he won't be hiding injuries on us any time soon." Molly sighed picking up the empty pudding bowls and added them to the sink.

"No one will be able to hide injuries Molly, it is one down side to living with a healer." Severus commented sounding a little wary himself and gave a sigh as a phial was thrust at him and glared at her.

"Problem Severus?" Albus asked in a tone that said that it was a good idea not to lie.

"Just a headache, I must admit that the Headache Cure she has come up with is quite good and actually has good side effects." He said as he downed the contents.

"Such as?"

"It make you clear headed and energised and with a need to do something with you hands. For students they head off to study, and teachers find it easier to read through essays and teach classes for the next four hours." He replied slipping the phial in his pocket to be sterilised back in the lab. He frowned as he heard a snap and glanced to his left side at Niya and then to Remus who had a look of shocked painful relief on his face.

"Ow." Remus said after the fact but sounding very relieved.

"What was that?" Molly sounded horrified.

"Rib and two vertebrae, slightly out of place." Niya muttered with a slight shake of her head, making more notes. "Needs more Iron in diet…" She slid a sheet of parchment over to Severus who picked it up to read and he began muttering to himself, picking up a quill adding his own notes to what she had written.

"Severus perhaps it is best if you move to the lab where you won't be disturbed." Albus suggested kindly as he glared at Molly as she dropped a pot.

He nodded curtly and stood and tapped Niya's shoulder and she scooped up her note book and dragged Remus with her who followed with a chuckle walking beside her, so she wouldn't lose her grip on him. Her note book floated in front of her as she continued to write.

"Well it seems she can use wandless magic when in need." He commented.

"I have a feeling that she can do quite a bit when she needs to, whether she should be able to or not…" He gave a little snort. "Much like Potter I suspect." His eyes narrowed as he spotted the twins waiting outside the lab door, holding dragon hide gloves. "I believe there are a number of cauldrons down there with your names on them." He commented dryly and opened the door and followed them down.

"Something tell me that this month is going to be spent learning a lot about Niya and what she can do, with conscious of it or not." Remus murmured quietly as he took the seat next to the girl as she dropped her notebook on the desk and continued writing. "Though I do hope that she'll let me go soon, or it could get embarrassing."

"I'm certain that her instincts will save your dignity Lupin." Severus sneered. "Or you could do it yourself after all you know the spell."

"True." He nodded.

"Because something tells me you aren't going to be going any where for the next few hours." He smirked.

"I should have brought my book." Remus sighed, and blinked as a book appeared beside his arm.

"Like I said just like Potter." Severus sneered.

"Tell me Severus, how are your aches that you normally have?" Remus asked quietly so the twins wouldn't hear as they moaned over the dirty cauldrons as they began their work. He watched as the Potions Master paused in writing before looking up, his face blank but his eyes showed his surprise. "I noticed through dinner that she was seat quite close to you, her elbow was always in contact with your arm, and the little crease she had in her forehead slowly faded as the meal continued." He nodded as he saw that Severus was listening and knew what he was talking about. "You also seemed a lot calmer and not nearly as scathing as you usually are, you missed several opportunities to make cutting remarks."

"The little minx" Severus breathed. "I didn't even notice, she's been soothing me since yesterday."

"I am going to guess that the headache started yesterday?"

"Yes." He nodded as he went back to adding his own notes.

"It's probably your body's way of dealing with the healing she's been doing, and the release of tension as your body relaxes." Remus mused, feeling his own body relaxing. "I noticed that Harry isn't nearly as angry as he normally is and much more relaxed around people."

"What are you feeling at the moment?" Severus asked just as quietly.

"Well I've noticed my wolf hasn't been this calm and happy in years, not since Harry was born. This is the first time so close to the full moon that I haven't been in constant pain and discomfort…actually this is the first time with out a pain reducer that I have so relaxed and pain free…" he paused thinking and a smile tugged at his lips. "I actually feel completely normal."

"Well if what I am reading is right, just from this piece of parchment she is making a complementary potion to work in concert with the wolfsbane, as it is nearly impossible to make in the potion it's self." Severus gestured to the parchment in front of him. "That's a part of why she is scanning you, she is testing to see how your body would react to different potions, added to the fact you already have Wolfsbane in your system helps her to judge how you would react."

"She can do that with out the actual tests?" Remus raised an eyebrow.

"And with out the side effects." Severus nodded. "With her empathy and Healing she is a genius when it comes to potions and the effects it would have on some one."

"She must have impressed you Severus, you gave her a compliment." Remus chuckled.

"Truth be told I am a little jealous, she can do things with potions that I can only dream of and know the reactions with out the trails and errors. Though she admits that on occasion she has been proven wrong in the way she thinks a potion will react…" He looked down at Niya's note book and raised an eyebrow. "I believe she is writing out a recipe for said potion…I had no idea that she could do it so fast."

"It will probably have to be adjusted a few times before it is completely effective but it should do for now." Niya replied looking up from her work as she set the quill down and released Remus's arm and blinked as she looked around the lab. "When did lunch finish?"

"Nearly three hours ago." Remus chuckled. "You've been working on that for nearly four hours."

"Oh dear how many people did I scold and rat out for having injuries?" She asked blinking and a faint flush covered her cheeks.

"Just Harry after a prank went wrong and the Twins are serving detention for the next three weeks." Remus nodded in the direction of the twins sitting in front of the dozen dirty cauldrons. "Molly for getting angry at the twins and Severus for have a headache…and popped a few of my joints back into place."

"Hmm, not bad for one tangent." She chuckled as she stretched out her entire body, easing a few cramps.

"What would you call a good tangent?" Severus asked archly.

"Where I don't have to heal any one or dish out calming draughts." She shrugged. "The only time that happens is when I am on my own, basically that tells me that everything as it should be when that happens."

"I'm going to take a guess and say that is also the only time that you truly relax as well." Remus nodded.

"That's why my rooms have to heavily warded so I don't continue my soothings in my sleep." She shrugged.

"I might remind Albus about that, I'm not sure if he has remembered to add warding to your room." Remus frowned. "Do you need me for anything else?" He asked, shaking off his musing.

"No I'm done with you for now." Niya chuckled shaking her head. "Is there anyone going to Diagon anytime soon? There are a few things I need." She asked and then frowned. "Now why does that seem familiar?"

"We were discussing it at lunch Niya." Severus chuckled faintly. "You wrote out a list and then shoved it at Remus."

"Well then, I guess I don't have to worry about that then." She shook her head and moved of picking up ingredients and a rather large cauldron and set them up on a spare desk muttering to herself about being rude.

Remus shook his head in amusement and left the lab.

Niya stretched her limbs as she left the potions lab as her stomach wouldn't stop rumbling from the lack of food. She was on her own and she wasn't sure when Professor Snape had left the lab, but she had a feeling that it had been hours and should be close to dinner time. She winced a little as a few joints popped loudly as she walked into the kitchen and Remus made a face.

"Does that happen often?" He inquired sipping at a mug of what smelt like coffee.

"Sometimes." She nodded and made herself a mug of tea, frowning a little when she sensed that every one was sleeping. "Did I work through dinner?"

"You worked through an entire day, Niya." Remus sighed. "No one could get your attention from the potions you were working on. The supplies you wanted from Diagon Alley are in your room and wards have been put in place to let you sleep in peace."

"Oh…" She blinked a little in surprise. "That has not happened in nearly two years, I guess it's because I am not used to everyone here yet to be conscious of them when I really get into my work." She sighed as she sat down. "Who tried?"

"Myself, Severus, Albus, Charlie and Dray. Haz refused to go anywhere near you saying the last time he interrupted you, he got the scolding of his life and dosed with potions."

"Hmm I remember that." She shook her head. "He had a few injuries which is what probably pulled me out of the trance I was in." She sipped her tea quietly for awhile in silence. "So what time is it?"

"Close to lunch, most of the others are either in the library, at work or off doing their own thing." Remus shrugged. "I wouldn't go back to the lab until Molly has had a chance to feed you though."

"Hmm that's what finally pulled me out of my trance, besides finishing up the potion I was working on." She nodded and was about to go rummaging through the cupboards for some food when Molly walked in and ordered her to sit before quickly whipping up some lunch for her. "I think if my stomach rumbled any louder every one would have heard it." She chuckled lightly as she dug into her meal.

"Well the only thing that you have eaten lately was a few lemon drops from Albus and a few sugar quills that Dray managed to get you to eat." Molly scolded as she began serving up lunch for every one else as they began trooping in.

"I think I am going to have to put that alarm in after lunch." Niya murmured to her self shaking her head.

"How is your restock going Niya?" Haz asked as he sat down across from her.

"Nearly completed, all I have to do is restock my belts and sort out my Healer's trunk, last time I looked in there is was a bit of a mess." She shrugged and then frowned slightly. "Did some one say something about hospital potions to me?" She asked in general looking about the table.

"Yes that would have been me" Albus answered as he walked into the room. "I asked if you would be willing to do up the hospital potions for the school as Severus is willing to turn them over to you so he can have some time for research, you just asked me to gather a list of everything that was need and in what quantities." He informed her as he handed over a roll of parchment. "If you need extra supplies then do ask."

"Sure that won't be a problem." She nodded unrolling the list and looking it over before pulling a book out of a pocket and looking it over and frowned when she saw a few items were flashing to get her attention. She pulled out another small book and began writing out a list of things that she needed. "I didn't think that I had gone through so much of my stock already…" Her frown deepened. "Have I been dosing people again? A large quantity of my calming potion and relaxing balm is missing."

"Ah that would have been last night." Albus nodded. "There was quite a large argument going on up here and a large pile of Calming draughts found their way into every one's drinks." His eyes twinkled brightly as he chuckled.

"And the balm?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You thrust three jars of it on me." Remus gave her a gentle smile. "I must admit that it has done wonders for my joints."

"Hmm if this keeps up I am going to have to do up an automated book connected to my potions so I know where they are going and to who…" She shook her head and continued with her list. "I wonder if I could do up an automated shopping list with the Apothecary, connected to by account so it is automatically paid for and items are sent out as I need them…" She tapped her lips thinking.

"It can be arranged." Albus assured her.

"It would be a great help." She nodded as she absently finished off her lunch and pulled another book from a pocket and wrote out from memory the potions she had already made. "Could some one charm this to interact with my stock of potions to keep track of where to whom they go to?" She asked sliding the book up the table, before making a copy of her potions equipment and ingredients connecting it to her original and wrote out a letter to both Gringotts and the Apothecary asking for an automated system.

Once she was done she handed it to Albus and in return she got her Potions Tracer back, she looked it over before nodding.

"Niya I would also like to talk to you before you disappear again." Albus caught her attention as she stood.

"Yes sir" She nodded and waited as every body suddenly evacuated the kitchen leaving only Remus, Albus, Molly and her self.

"As you have declined going to Hogwarts you will be staying here with Molly and her family and Remus. If you need anything ask them and they will make sure you get as soon as possible." Albus told her with a smile. "You can also set up your room and your half of the lab as you need it, though again any spell work will have to come through an adult." He waited until she nodded with understanding. "I was also hoping that you would be available for emergency healings both to the people that come here and at the school?"

"I would be most annoyed if you tried to keep me away at those times, Sir." She nodded. "I doubt I would need to be called if some one was injured here, I would feel it as soon as they walked in the house…" She frowned and sighed, pulling out a small brown vial and held it out slightly to her left, and smirked as Severus stormed into the room sneering at all present, scowled at her before snatching the vial and storming back out of the room. "I'll have to make sure he has a batch of that at the school." She murmured and made a quick not of it on a note pad in her breast pocket.

"When did he arrive?" Remus asked with a small frown.

"Twenty minutes into lunch, he's been in the lab looking for my headache cure." She shrugged. "That was my last vial."

"Hmm see that you do make a batch or two available to the school, add it to the potions list for Poppy please." Albus requested.

"I will sir." She nodded.

"Please Niya, call me Albus." He twinkled at her. "I'll see that this list is done as soon as Severus is available."

"Thank you Sir." She nodded and then headed up to her room, ignoring the smothered chuckles and the waves of amusement coming off the adults. She carefully resorted her Healers Trunk and then carried it down to the lab to store her potions carefully away.

"Niya…" Severus started as he came into the room and did a quick glance around the room. "Do you have any more vials of the headache cure?" He asked.

"No you had the last one, I'll be doing up a few batches tonight, I'll make sure you get a supply by tomorrow morning." She shook her head as she continued transferring vials, jars and tubs into her trunk, leaving a few on the shelf as she went.

She looked up suddenly and frowned and then hurried up as a faint crash was heard, the sounds lead her to one of the lounge rooms on the first floor to find Ron and Haz in a screaming match while Ginny helped Dray off the floor.

She knelt down next to Dray and applied some bruise balm to his darkening eye, a quick bone mending potion and then wrenched his nose back into place and gave him a swelling reducer.

"What is going on in here?" Molly yelling over the yelling boys and then scowled at them both as she caught sight of Niya tending Draco. "I expected better from both of you, you Ronald Weasley will spend the next week in the lab cleaning cauldrons, you Harry will spend in the kitchen with me helping with the meals." She glared at all of them. "And Draco will help with the dishes. I have had enough of your childish spats, grow up. Every one of you are confined to your rooms. Now march!" She pointed in the direction of the stairs and watched the three boys scamper up the stairs. "Thank heavens we moved them all to separate rooms a few days ago." She muttered before returning to the kitchen with Ginny and Hermione right behind her, telling her what exactly had happened.

"What did you sense?" Severus asked as she returned to the lab and continued sorting out her stores.

"A fear spike from Draco, anger and Jealousy from Ron and annoyance, frustration and anger from Harry." She sighed. "Ron thinks he is loosing Harry to Draco, and he won't let go of the childish things that they all did when they were younger."

"How long have Potter and Draco been friends?" He asked with a slight sneer, that had no feeling to it.

"Since fourth year, Harry introduced me to Draco that summer, we've been friends ever since." She shrugged. "All the fighting that has been going on at school since then have been acts to keep Draco's father unaware and to keep his 'friends' in line." She finished filling her trunk and closed the lid.

"They managed to hide their friendship from every one at the school for any amount of time is quiet an feat." He shook his head. "Then again those two have always been very good at hiding their true emotions and just showing a mask to the world…"

"Very much like yourself." She murmured as she lifted the trunk and carried it up stairs and stored it in an empty study that she had found earlier in the week, and gave it a much closer look over.

"What are you doing in here Niya?" Remus asked sticking his head in the door.

"I was thinking about turning a few unused rooms in to a little infirmary." She replied absently as she studied the room.

"That may very be a good idea my dear." Albus commented as he slipped in past Remus. "You can never be too prepared after all." He glanced around the room. "I'll get a few people on it…would you prefer having a room down here on the first floor near the lab?"

"Only if it is thoroughly warded, if wounded were brought here the wards on my bedroom would have to be strengthened so I don't feel echoes of the pain." She nodded.

"It would be much easier to do that on a ground floor room as it is closer to the ground and we can tie the wards to the earth it's self." He stroked his beard. "Yes that maybe a nice solution." He nodded. "We'll work on it my dear."

"Thank you sir." She smiled as she seemed to come out of her trance and left her trunk near the wall. "Make sure no one moves that, or they'll end up with a nasty little shock."

"I'll make sure of it." Albus nodded. "Severus just left to restock your supplies again."

"Good, then I can start brewing the headache cure tonight and have it ready for shipment tomorrow dinner time."

"It needs that long?" Remus raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"It needs to stew for three hours before it can be bottled." She nodded. "The brewing alone takes two and each batch makes only twenty vials."

"Why don't you wait until after dinner before you start?" Albus suggested with a small chuckle. "I have no need to hear Molly scolding us for letting start long brewing potions before a meal, it is only two hours."

"Hmm." She nodded before she left the room and headed up stairs to check on Dray and Haz and was not at all surprised to see that Dray and snuck into Haz's room. She didn't say anything but joined the huddle of comfort and safety on the bed, and soon found herself in the middle with both of them holding on to her and settled down to relax a little as she felt them drift of into sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Niya looked up from her four cauldrons as a gong sounded through out the lab and then chuckled as she realised that it was the alarm that Albus had finally set up for her to remind her of the time. It was set to go off at one in the morning, again at seven in the morning, at midday for lunch and again at six thirty for dinner if she was in the lab. She set the alarm on her wand to go off in another hour as by then the first batch of Headache cure would be ready to be bottled and cased ready for transport to Hogwarts.

She quickly washed up and made her way to the kitchen for breakfast.

"Morning Molly." She greeted the woman at the stove.

"Oh, Good Morning Niya, I thought you were in the lab?" She returned the greeting as she started to dish out two plates of food.

"I was, the alarm Albus placed in my lab was quiet sufficient at getting my attention." She chuckled as she poured herself a cup of tea.

"Oh what did he use? He wouldn't tell us." Molly asked with a chuckle of her own.

"A very loud gong, timed to go off on time for every meal and one in the morning when every I am in the lab." Niya shook her head.

"I am surprise it didn't give you a fright." Molly sounded a little worried. "Or caused an accident."

"I'm used to that sound being use to get my attention. My old teacher used to use it." She shrugged. "Albus must have gotten in contact with her and asked a few questions." She sipped at her tea as Molly took her own seat and they ate in a comfortable silence.

"Niya would you have any idea how to keep those boys out of trouble?" She asked quietly as she finished off her breakfast and placed her dishes in the sink before starting up breakfast for every one else.

"Ask Remus, I gave him a list of things that would keep Dray and Harry occupied until school started. I don't know the other well enough to even guess." She suggested as she placed her empty dishes in the sink and poured herself another cup of tea.

"Hmm Remus did mention something about going the Diagon Alley this morning for a few things." She nodded slowly.

"What is the date?" Niya asked.

"Thursday the 13th" Molly replied with a chuckle. "It's hard to believe that it has only been eleven days since you came to stay with us."

"I agree there, it feels so much longer." Niya agreed with a nod. "I'm going to go have a shower and then start on the Infirmary potions that are needed. I might not be up for lunch but I will show up for dinner." Niya said before hurrying up to her room and grabbed a change of clothes and had a nice long shower before heading back down to the lab just as her wand alarm went off and bottled the three cauldrons of headache cure and packed them into two different crates. One marked for Severus and the other for the infirmary.

She read through the lists of potions and quantities that Madame Pomphrey wanted and with a chuckle found that she could restock most of what the nurse wanted from her own stores that hadn't been already allocated else where. She carefully crated what she had, marking off what she had already done and started on the ones that she didn't have enough of, as well as making back up supplies.

She was in the middle of tending six cauldrons when Severus slipped into lab looking around and raised an eye brow at the two crates one, nearly triple the size of the other.

"The small crate is for you, the other is the potions for the infirmary" Niya said with out looking up as she added a few ingredients the three different cauldrons at nearly the same time.

"All of them?" He inquired, shrinking them both and pocketing them.

"No, just what I had on hand already that won't be missed until I do up new batches." She shook her head. "I know that I have all summer to do them but right now it is giving me something to do other then to listen to Ron complain and whine at everyone." She growled in irritation. "I swear that boy is a three year old. It is something that Harry and Draco can do with out right now." She pulled out on of her many potions journals and flicked it open to a page filled with theories and recipes. "Could you look over the four potions in there for me?" She asked glancing up at him. "I am trying to make a good dreams potion that will keep nightmares at bay but promote good dreams that will last for at least six hours."

"May I ask why? It sounds like a good idea…"

"I'm trying to make it for Draco and Harry so at least they can get some sleep." She sighed. "The last lot I made did work but only lasted for three hours and that is not enough for them to be able to survive on, and I dare not give them dreamless sleep unless I absolutely have to."

"Good thinking." He nodded in understanding. "How is it that they aren't looking exhausted?"

"Harry has a little control over wandless magic, he uses it for glamour's. At the moment he is using it on himself and Draco so they won't worry any one, but I can feel their exhaustion, it's getting worse every day to the point they are getting desperate for a few hours of sleep." She explained sounding tired herself. "I have been trying for nearly a year to get the recipe right…"

"And now you know that you need a fresh pair of eyes and a new perspective." He nodded in understanding. "To be truthful I have been trying for something like this for years and come up with nothing…at least you have a few that work partially." He admitted sounding a little impressed. "Have you tried giving them the partial working one and soothing them for a few hours after it wares off?" He asked as he continued reading. "It would do for a short while."

"I have, and it did work for a few hours but they would need to spend the night in my room, so no else is effected and some how I don't see Molly agreeing to letting two boys sleeping in my room for the night." She nodded sounding a little frustrated. "I tried to get her to agree to it last night, but she wouldn't listen past the point of my wanting then to sleep in my room and jumped to the wrong conclusion."

"Well I authorise it, I'll even play bloody chaperone if I have to." He scowled. "I'll have to think on these for awhile…I agree with you theories and agree with your notes that there is something missing but I am not sure what." He looked up startled as the gong went off again. "What in the bloody hell was that?"

"That is my lunch alarm." She grinned at him. "Albus installed it last night, it goes off at every meal when I am in here and again at one in the morning to remind me to go to bed." She chuckled as his scowl deepened. "It's the same sound that my potion's teacher used to get my attention so I am used to hearing it and knowing that it means it's time to stop for a little while." She stirred one of the cauldrons before turning off the heat and then poured it out into tubs that had already been sterilised and set up and then set the cauldron down near the sink ready for cleaning and then slapped the lids on each tub that had already been labelled.

"You're not going up for lunch?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No, Molly already knows that I won't be up until dinner." She shook her head. "I told her I was working on potions all day, but the true reason is to stay away from Ron before hex him and get into trouble."

"Some one had better do it or I will" Snape growled under his breath before disappearing up the stairs once more.

"Give it time and some one will." Niya shook her head turning her attention back to her cauldrons humming a song under her breath as she worked ladling out the potions in to the correct containers before stacking the dirty cauldrons near the large sink on the far side of the room for the next trouble maker to clean and sat down, pulling out several journals, quills and ink and began reworking some of her theories, and updating her potions journal on what she had been working on that day.

"Afternoon Niya" She looked up at the greeting and gave the twins a small smile and chuckled at their dismayed cries at how the dirty cauldrons were breeding, just to spite them.

"Afternoon George, Fred." She returned to her writing before getting up and checking the last cauldron that she had left to steep. "Any chance of you getting another helper?" She asked with a raised eyebrow as she heard arguing coming from upstairs.

"More then likely." They chuckled evilly as they pulled on their dragonhide gloved and began scrubbing. "Ron is really asking for it. He has done nothing but antagonise nearly every one today." Fred added frowning at one of the cauldrons.

"Even had a go at Remus a little while ago, some thing about buy sweets for Harry and not for him." George added with a shake of his head. "Don't know what is wrong with him really…"

"Hmm…" Niya frowned looking up at the ceiling where she could feel the most emotions coming from.

"You going to be doing any more brewing?" Fred asked, looking as if he was serious hoping she would answer no.

"Yes I will be as soon as those ones are clean and dry." She nodded distractedly, as she opened her senses a little more. Slowly she stood and made her way up to the main floor and followed the sounds of the sound scolding that Ron was currently getting from his mother. She stood just out of their view and studied the youngest Weasley boy with her barriers around her empathy down completely sensing that something was off with the boy, She just wasn't sure what it was.

"Honestly Ronald, what is wrong?" Molly demanded. "You have been whining, sniping and growling at every one for the last three days." Her fists propped up on her hips and a disapproving looking etched deeply on her face.

"I don't know." He yelled back, then his face slowly paled as he realised he had just yelled at his mother and shank back a little from her. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shout…" He murmured running his hands through his hair. "I don't know what is wrong." He continued sounding very frustrated. "No one has told me why Malfoy is here, Harry won't talk to me, I don't even understand about Niya…"

"Draco was disinherited by his father after some fight they had, Harry and Niya trust him and that is more then enough for everyone here." Molly glared at him.

"Why? Why is it enough?"

"Because she is an empath and a very good healer." Molly sighed and dropped her arms from her hips. "Her father was a good friend of the families, we haven't seen her in years." She studied her son for a moment. "You really don't know why you are upset do you?"

"No I don't" Ron sighed.

"Have you eaten any of Harry's little chocolate biscuits?" Niya asked as she suddenly walked forward watching him carefully, before reaching out a hand and ran it an inch away from his skin from his forehead to his stomach.

"Umm…yeah he left some sitting on his bedside table." Ron flushed a little.

"Oh Ron…" Niya sighed pinching her nose. "How many and when?"

"Two days ago and only three." He looked at her a curious look on his face.

"Those cookies that you seem to like so much were specially made for Harry by me." She shook her head and flipped open her thigh case and pulled out a thick grey vial of potion. "They were made to stop making him grumpy in the morning after a bad night of not sleeping or to help him sleep, by changing his mood to something a little more pleasant." She handed it to him. "Drink it once you get to a bathroom, it will detox your system and get the potion out of your system." She glared at him. "Hopefully this will teach you not to eat food that doesn't belong to you and wasn't offered."

"How long?" Molly asked her looking a little concerned.

"A few hours before he feels a little better after drinking that, it'll be another day or two before he is back to normal though." She sighed. "I'll talk to Haz and let him know that he had better put his cookies out of sight." She shook her head and headed up the stairs following the bond that she had with Harry to find him. "Haz?" She knocked on his bedroom door and slipped into the room and smiled as she found both the boys once again curled up on the bed.

"Need something?" Harry asked sounding sleepy.

"Just to ask you to hide your cookies that I make for you." She gestured to the tin sitting on the bedside table. "Apparently Ron has been into them hence his bad moods for the last couple of days."

"Well that does explain that." Harry sighed as he sat up, placed the lid on the tin and then tucked it away under the mattress.

"How did you two sleep last night?" She asked as she sat on the edge of the bed.

"Better then we have in awhile." Draco admitted cuddling back up to Harry as he slid back into the bed. "Did you do something new to the potion?"

"No." She shook her head with a small smile. "I joined you for a few hours last night." She chuckled as they both just blinked tiredly at her. "I had a small theory that maybe the bond that we all share was a little strained from being so far apart for so long and then to have the traumas on top of it…it strained it a bit too much. So every few hours I will be joining you two in sleep, just to see what happens." She studied them both carefully. "If things get a little easier I'll have to monitor the bond more carefully in the future."

"It could be the cause." Draco nodded resting his head on Harry's shoulder. "We don't actually know much about this bond, so it could be apart of some of our problems."

Niya nodded in agreement as she looked around the room frowning when she noticed something different and then spotted the Ron's things had been moved. "Ron not in here anymore?"

"Kept complaining about being woken up…" Harry grinned slowly. "Hey we aren't going to complain, Remus even put up silencing spells so the rest of the house wouldn't get disturbed by our strange sleeping patterns and what not."

"Hmm I see you two getting into trouble in the near future." Niya chuckled with a short shake of her head. "Just remember that no one knows that you two are more then friends." She warned them as she stood. "I'll be up in a few hours, most likely with Professor Snape as Molly blew her top at the very thought of me being in here with two boys unaccompanied." She wrinkled her nose. "He is going to play chaperone while I see if I can calm the bond and work on the potion."

"Are you getting enough sleep?" Harry asked in concern opening one of his eyes pinning her with a one eye glare.

"I've been getting between three and six hours." She shrugged. "That's pretty good for me." She grinned at them as she stood up and kissed them both on the forehead. "Are you two going to eat?"

"We ate dinner two hours ago, Niya." Draco chuckled.

"Damn…that means my dinner gong didn't get my attention." She frowned as she walked out of the room and trotted down the stairs and into the kitchen and chuckled as Molly pointed sternly at a seat and set a large plate of food down in front of her.

"I take it that the gong didn't get your attention for dinner?" Albus asked with a small chuckle.

"It did this morning but I must have been too deep in thought to hear it for dinner." She sighed. "with all luck Ron's little mood swings have been taken care off."

"Thank Merlin for that." Remus growled. "I was ready to hex him."

"You and every one else." Niya scowled. "He ate something that didn't below to him nor did he ask and it had a potion baked into it…it obviously didn't agree with him, he should be at this very moment be throwing up to get it out of his system." She caught Severus's satisfied smirk out of the corner of her eye. "He should be fine in a few days as his moods readjust, hopefully he will ask before eating something that was just left out."

"Is he going to be hungry when he is done?" Molly asked looking a little concerned as she glanced towards the door.

"No, he wont be hungry for another nine hours, anything in his stomach will make him nauseous. He'll only be able to drink water and mild tea until breakfast tomorrow." Niya shook her head. She turned her attention back to her meal ignoring the rest of the talking going on around her as she pulled a journal out from one of her pockets and made a few notes on what Ron had done and how it had affected him and the treatment she had given.

"Niya." Albus's voice called for attention and she had a feeling that it wasn't the first time. She glanced up and saw him chuckling and looked back down to see that her dinner plate was gone and a bowl of what looked to have been pudding had been consumed along with a cup of tea.

"Yes sir?"

"Severus and Molly tell me that you wish to spend a few nights observing Harry and Draco, to see if you can fix a potion that you have been working on?" Albus questioned looking at her over his glasses.

"Yes sir." She nodded. "They both could use some more sleep and that is what this potion should be able to do with out taking their dreams away completely."

"Very well, for this purpose Ron has been moved in to another room so he will not disturb you while you are working." He nodded in understanding.

"What about a chaperon?" Molly demanded.

"I don't think will be necessary, she is after all a healer and an empath…" He ignored Molly's concerned look. "Niya is very responsible and I don't think that she will let the boys talk her into anything," Albus chuckled. "But if you insist Severus has offered to watch over them all."

"Give Ron this in his water when he comes down later." Niya handed over a vial with a thick clear fluid in it. "It will help him rehydrate" She stood. "There are a few things that I need before I settle down for the night watching Haz and Dray."

She hurried down to the lab and carried her blue trunk up to their room and settled down on a chair that had been placed in the corner of the room and pulled out a journal and a self inking quill. She left the trunk open just in case in a trance she felt the need to brew a potion up on the spot.

Haz and Dray were already sound asleep, dark circles around their eyes that seemed to have sunk into their skulls showing how bad things were actually getting.

"Any thing you need me to do?" Severus asked as he came into the room.

"A one way silencing charm around them would be good, so they can't hear us but we can hear them." She nodded as she made herself comfortable in the chair. "Other then that? Not much unless I ask for something so I hope you brought a nice thick book, this is basically going to be very boring." She shook her head.

"Will you be in a trance?"

"Yes." She nodded and leaned back in the chair, journal balanced on her knee and slowly lowered her barriers, wincing as all the emotions around the house crashed into her mind all at once and it took her a few minutes to block all but her two friends.

She concentrated on the bond that spread from her to them, going over every inch of it, checking for damage, strain or if it had maybe strengthened with out her knowing about it. Her hand absently took notes as she found that the bond was strained, more so then it had been with being apart for nine months.

The only thing that she could put down as a cause was the attacks that had happened and then her shock and grief with the death of her father and their near death experiences.

She frowned a little, she hadn't quiet realised at the time that either boy had been so close to death by the time she had made it to their side to heal the damage. She slowly strengthened the bond where it had become too thin and was causing some of the troubles they were having before focusing on the boys physical condition.

She was pleased to find that all the injuries were nearly completely healed and that they were getting enough to eat…so it wasn't a physical injury causing the problems.

Her hand jotted down her discoveries and her thoughts on them and adding what she was discarding as not important but took note of it any way just in case at a later date it did was pertinent to what was wrong.

"This is going to be a long night." She muttered not aware that she had spoken aloud and continued with her search.

Niya slowly came out of her trance as she felt both boys wake from their peaceful slumber and blinked a few times to get her eyes to focus and saw with a small smile that she had taken at least ten pages worth of notes. She glanced to her right and saw that Severus was slowly waking as well from the doze he had fallen into.

She stretched slowly and placed the journal into her trunk with out saying a word and Severus stood and floated her trunk back down to the lab with a small nod. She made sure that every thing was limber before even trying to stand so not to cause any cramping. She gave the boys a encouraging smile as they smiled sleepily at her, she knew that they were enjoying waking slowly and not remembering nightmares that usually plagued their sleep.

"Take your time guys, it's only seven in the morning, breakfast wont be starting for another hour at the most." She told them softly before walking out of the room and made her way to her own room, dug through one of her trunks and pulled out a change of clothes and everything she need for the bathroom before entering the nearest bathroom and locked the door.

She enjoyed a nice long leisurely shower, letting her muscles relax in the heat before shutting off the water and dressing in comfortable jeans and a tight fitting sleeveless shirt. She pulled her hair in to high tail and braided the rest so it was out of the way.

She had just finished when some one pounded on the door rather rudely and Ron's voice demanded that who ever was in there to hurry up as they had been in far too long.

"Really Ron." She chided him as she opened the door and stepped out of the room. "There are three other bathrooms on this floor and another four on the ground floor, no need to be so rude." She chuckled as Ron flushed red and bolted into the room. Niya shook her head in amusement and dropped her dirty clothes off in her room before trotting eagerly down the stairs and into the kitchen. "Good Morning!" She chirped happily and sat down as Molly placed a plate food of food in front of her along with a mug of tea.

"Well you sure are in a good mood." Molly chuckled.

"I am." She nodded. "I think it is partly because Haz and Dray feel so good right now, they got a decent night sleep and feel a lot better. I also had a nice long relaxing shower and I think I know what is causing their problem." She explained before digging into the food, complementing Molly between bites.

"Well you are in a better mood then Severus is at least." Molly shook her head.

"He's just cranky because he has a crick in his neck." Niya shrugged as she gulped down most of her tea and held it out for a refill as most of the adult population entered the kitchen and got served their morning beverage.

"Morning" Albus greeted them all and raised an eyebrow at Niya's chirpy response. "I take it that you found out what was wrong with Harry and Draco and they are feeling much better."

"Yes sir." She nodded as she finished off her breakfast and pushed her plate out of the way and nursed her second cup of tea.

"And?" Severus growled from his seat, nursing his own cup.

"Don't snap at me, not my fault you fell asleep in that position." She glowered at him for a moment. "As far as I can tell there is two causes both of which are fixed and both are preventable so it doesn't happen again." She paused as she took a long drink. "The first was caused by hexes they were hit with, when and where I am not sure about but they were something like a nightmare inducer. I have removed the hexes and repaired the damage that they caused." She smiled at Remus as he offered a refill and gladly accepted.

"The second?" Remus asked as he sat back down.

"The bond we share." She sighed. "It was strained. First by the nine months apart and was only partly recovered by the meeting we had on the 2nd of July. Then I had the shock of learning my father was dead and losing myself for days and they couldn't get to me to help. Third by Dray's attack which very nearly killed him and fourth by Haz's attack which nearly killed him." She stared into her mug, her good mood slowly disappearing. "The week that we have spent here may have been enough to heal their bodies but it is going to take weeks of close contact for the bond to recover completely. I've strengthened the bond in places where it had become too weak and was close to snapping."

"I take it that would be bad?" Remus asked looking worried.

"Very bad." She nodded. "For all three of us, the only reason those two are still alive is because of the bond."

"How so?" Molly asked looking beyond worried.

"It doesn't matter right now." Niya shook her head. "If you need to know I will tell you but none of you don't need to know right now, the only person I will tell is Madame Poppy and that is because she is their mediwitch."

"That is reasonable." Albus nodded in agreement and gave Molly a signal to leave it alone.

"Sir I have a question about my doing magic out of school as I am not seventeen yet…" Niya said a little hesitantly.

"While you are not yet of age, you have graduated from your school, they have already put the paper work in and we are just waiting for the results." Albus assured her with an understanding smile. "For the moment you have what I guess you could call a guarded permission permit. As long as there is adults near by you have no fear of reprisals for using your magic."

"Well that will make my job a little easier when it comes to healing." Niya nodded a little bit of worry disappearing from her face.

"The little infirmary will be ready by tonight for you to go over and approve, and if you still want your room moved that can be done at the same time." Albus added with his eyes twinkling as the students began stumbling in sleepily.

"That would be easier for me." She nodded. "With the permit I'll be able to ward my own rooms as I am used to doing that." She emptied her mug again. "Let me know when the infirmary is finished and I'll go over it." She stood. "I need to go over the notes I made last night and see what I can make out of them." She excused her self with a small nod of her head and made her way back down to her lab.

Niya rubbed her eyes tiredly as she packed away her journals and the various pieces of parchment that were sterone around her.

She had been working on the notes that she had taken on Haz and Dray for hours and had found nothing physically that would cause their symptoms. The only things that she could really point to were the immense strain on the bond and the horrifying life of abuse that they had both lead.

The bond strain she could cure over time like she had hold Albus at breakfast. But the nightmares of abuse and torture that they had taken from family and Voldemort were going to take months if not years to fully heal.

She knew that if offered councillors they would refuse as they were both private people and really didn't think that they were worth the trouble it would take to keep everything under secrecy spells and all she could really do for them was to be there when they wanted to talk…true some of the time that they had come to her for help by talking things out she had been brewing and in a trance but the way she had been trained and the way her instincts worked, they still ended up with help…she just didn't remember a lot of it.

With a tired sigh she placed everything away in her trunk and made her way back up to the kitchen and smiled slightly as she found Haz and Dray in the kitchen talking over tea and Haz automatically held out a cup a tea for her as she sat down next to them.

"What time is it?" She asked around a yawn and shook her head to clear some of the fog out of her mind.

"One am" Dray chuckled. "You've been working for nearly fourteen hours straight on the data you go last night."

"I know a few people went down to talk to you" Haz smirked at her. "Molly came back up looking stunned and a little guilty, Albus and Remus came up looking thoughtful and Severus was glowering at anything and everyone."

"Oh dear." Niya blinked.

"For those who know Severus, know that glowering look as 'I've been told the truth but I don't want to admit it' look." Dray chuckled. "I really don't know what you said but Mrs Weasley has really cut down on the lockdown watch that she has had on all of us and doesn't demand that we clean every minute of the day."

"Intriguing." Niya murmured as she sipped at her tea. "So why aren't you two sleeping? I know you are tired enough and I know you haven't tried…" She glared at them.

"Well partly to tell you that the infirmary is done and only waiting your look over and that your bedroom has been moved to near the lab, it used to be a sitting room with a closed off study in the back." Dray replied with a small shrug.

"Kind of like a bedroom and lounge all in one, as you don't sleep much and Dumbledore thought you might like a small library to work in with out having to fend off every ones emotions all the time." Haz added.

"Thoughtful of him, I'll have to ward it before I get lost in anything else…" Her glared intensified at them. "Stop distracting me, why aren't you sleeping? With all the repairs I did to the bond last night you should be able to get a good nights sleep with the potion I left by your bed."

"We know, Ni, it's just that…" Haz nibbled on his bottom lip.

"It's just gotten to the point where you are afraid to sleep." Niya nodded in understanding. "It'll get better guys, I'll be stopping in during the nights to check on you until I know that you are both sleeping properly with out me…" She gulped down the last of her tea, stood and kissed them both on the forehead and hugged them. "Up to bed, I'll be up as soon as I ward my rooms." She ordered.

"Yes mum" Dray drawled.

"Funny Dray." She chuckled. "Just remember that you can join me at any time you need to."

"Thanks Ni." Haz kissed her cheek before leaving the kitchen with Dray a few steps behind her.

"And here we thought you were all the same age." Remus's soft voice came out of the shadows in the corner of the kitchen.

"Actually they are about three to six months older." She shrugged turning slightly to face him. "Dray in March and Haz in July." She tilted her head at him slightly. "You've been watching them?"

"Trying to figure out a small puzzle." He slowly came out of the shadows looking a little pale.

"What puzzle?" She frowned.

"How close they are, they seem closer then friends, even closer then brothers at times." He sighed.

"Of course they are." She smiled softly at him. "We are all bonded in an emotional bond that helps us help each other, we can feel each others emotions." She chuckled a little as he just continued to look at her as he sat at the table. "They have lived much the same life, Remus. That causes a bond as well, a bond of survivors."

"Are they seeing each other?" He asked bluntly.

"Some times." She nodded slowly.

"Like friends with privileges?" He asked with a small snort.

"Something like that." She laughed. "For comfort, for love, for reassurance. There are many reasons why they get together and many reasons why they break it off again but they will always be friends…it's a little complicated but it helps them through the rough patches that they go through and they understand each other perfectly." She shrugged. "It may very well come to a point where they will come together permanently or break it off to be only the best of friends. But for now it is what they need."

"You said something like that earlier." He muttered,

"I tend to tell nothing but the truth when in a trance and asked questions." She shook her head in amusement, "Trust me it is nothing harmful to them, it is actually something that is very good. When they are ready they will move on." She moved to the door. "If you will excuse me I have a room to ward, friends to check up on, an infirmary to go over, potions to check and a bed to fall into."

She left the room with Remus chuckled quietly behind her.


End file.
